The Izumi Tachikawa Story
by Mizz Blackshaw
Summary: Four important people tell a tale of how two broken families come together to become one. A Koumi fic based off of the epilogue on season 02.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: I believe that this story is different from my other stories. It has a different tone and I played with different emotions. Plus, I added italicized words in between scenes, but that will come in later chapters. The story also switches to different points of view. For this first chapter, it's just Izzy, but everyone has a story to tell and they'll tell it later! Lastly, before you start reading, I wanted you to be familiar with a few important names.

Hitomi (hi-toe-MY) means beautiful eyes.

Makoto (ma-KOE-toe) means sincere.

Kayo (Kae-YOE) means beautiful.

Norio (NO-ree-oe) means man of law.

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Chapter 1

Kayo was a beautiful soul. Her heart always seemed to be in the right place. Seemed… She used to love me, and I her. We used to be inseparable. Now, she's packing her things as I sat hopelessly on my bed, watching her storm around and stuff things into her suitcase. She was mad at me for reasons beyond argument. There was nothing else she could do except for leave. Unfortunately, I had to agree. We used to be in love but it's gone.

We were in love from the first time we met. It was Davis's 18th birthday party. It took place at the new house he bought with his noodle cart money. Unfortunately, he didn't go to college or high school for that matter. However, he opened up his noodle cart and already started making a profit. I'm guessing it was a huge one considering he lives in a two story house with him and his girlfriend Sandra.

"Welcome!" He shouted over the loud music when I rang the doorbell.

I wasn't alone at the time. I came with Tai, Matt, and Sora. By this point, Matt proposed to Sora one morning in the park just days before. "Hi, Davis!" Tai greeted.

"Happy birthday!" Sora cheered.

"Thanks! Come on in!" Davis opened the door and stepped aside before we entered the house. It was huge and elegant looking. It was very surprising how clean it was! It looked better than my house!

"Wow, Davis, this is some place you have!" I yelled.

"Thanks, Izzy! I've been saving up forever!" He told me. "In fact, the rug you're standing on was imported from India and was paid with my first dollar! Well, it didn't cost a dollar but the very first dollar I ever made was put into this very rug!"

"Impressive!"

The doorbell rang, cutting our conversation short, moments later. "Maybe I should just keep this door open! With this music, I might not even hear the bell ring!"

It was Mimi, Norio (her boyfriend of three months), Yolei, and Ken. Collectively and as loudly as possible, they all said "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAVIS!"

"Guys! You made it! Nice to see you all again!" Davis and Norio have been friends for a long time. I can't remember how they met, but I can recall Davis introducing Norio to his new girlfriend.

"Did Cody make it yet?" Yolei asked, covering her ears.

"No. Did you hear from Kari, T.K, and Joe?" He asked her.

"Kari and T.K. will be late!"

"And Joe's behind us!" Ken yelled. "He should be here any minute! Meanwhile, can you turn down the music a little? I think we're all going to lose our voices by the time we cut the cake!"

"Good point!" Davis pulled his remote out of his pocket and turned the music down to a point where it was still loud but we can use our normal voices. "Better?"

"Much." Ken answered as he grabbed Yolei's hand and pulled her in to greet everyone.

Seconds later, as Ken predicted, Joe and Jim arrived. Then, Kari and T.K. about an hour after that. Finally, Cody arrived with two women I haven't met before. One had the exact same hair color and cut as Cody along with eye color and skin tone. She wore a short tight fitting red dress and strappy sandals. She had to be related to him because their features looked very similar. The other one was very different. She had long, wavy black hair and navy blue almost black eyes. She wore a pale blue tank top that complemented her ivory skin and a pair of black shorts that matched her knee-high boots. Everyone stopped dancing, eating, and mingling just to look at them. "Wow, Cody! You really scored!" Davis was the first one to speak.

"Hello, everyone." Cody greeted. "I would like you to meet my cousin, Kate, and her friend Kayo. Kate just got into town and I wanted to show her the nice friends I have."

"Well, come on in! Let loose! This is a party!" Davis cheered, letting them in.

My eyes were focused on Kayo. She really lived up to her name. Kayo was beautiful. Her hair bounced as she made her way to the couch which was where I was at the moment. My heart skipped a beat as I tried to focus on something else. That came easy once Tai started dancing with Joe! The two really aren't dancers! However, the focus was lost when she sat down next to me and very softly and as beautiful as music said "Hi."

I turned my attention towards her. She was sitting next to me with her ankles crossed and her chest facing me. "Hi, I'm Izzy." I held out a hand for a handshake.

"Hi, Izzy. I'm Kayo." She grabbed my hand and shook it. "I just love black eyes. I wish mine were."

"Oh? Why is that?" I asked with genuine confusion.

She shrugged. "Because everyone has blue eyes. I've never seen really black eyes before. They're beautiful."

I blushed. "You think my eyes are beautiful?"

"Yes." She smiled.

"I think your eyes are beautiful too. I mean, everyone has blue eyes, but they're not as dark as yours."

She blushed. "Well, I also think your hair is a beautiful shade of red. Everyone has bright fire red hair, but you have true, deep red."

"And your hair is a nice shade of black."

"And you're a nice height." I think she's trying to start a compliment fight based on appearance. This has to be the weirdest first impression! "You're just my height!"

I smiled. "You're a nice height too. Usually everyone's taller than me."

"Really? I like short guys." Finally! Someone likes me for my height! "Would you like to hang out sometime? Maybe we can get together in a place more private."

"Like a date?" I asked. She blushed and nodded. "Okay."

Ever since then, we've dated for three years. By then, we've both finished school and had jobs as a management accountant and a Digital World researcher. Everything was going perfectly. Except, I wasn't too happy. I had an amazing girlfriend, but I'm still living with my parents. They're not the problem, but it was the fact. But Mom wanted me to move out once I was married. She wanted to make sure that I had someone to cook for me. Little does she know that I can make a mean bowl of cereal! She's so traditional.

So I decided to pop the question.

"Hi, Kayo." I called her while she was on her lunch break. "Can you come to the park? I was just here and someone came up and wanted to talk to you about some sort of business promotion."

"Business promotion? You mean a new company?" She asked. "Is this some sort of joke?"

"Just get over here. He's on his lunch break too so he won't be here for long."

"I'll be there in three point eleven minutes." She hung up and was on her way. Working with numbers allows her to be very accurate.

I sat at the park bench while I fumbled the small box around my fingers. Inside was a fifteen hundred dollar ring that I hoped symbolized my love in a nutshell. "Please let this work." I pleaded into the sky, hoping that the heavens would hear me.

"Izzy, where is he?" Kayo asked, rushing out of the car. By the time she got to me, she was out of breath.

"Sit down, my love. I need to tell you something important."

"I missed him, didn't I?" She sighed, sitting next to me.

"He never came. I made that up."

"Why?" She was about to get up, but I held her hand. "Izzy, I have to get back to work."

"You have time unless you're still working through lunch." She sighed as she relaxed into the bench. "I need to tell you something important."

"What is it?"

"First of all, do you know where we are?"

She looked at me with confusion. "The park bench?"

"Not just the park bench."

She thought for a minute then gave me a big smile. "This is the place where we shared our first kiss."

I nodded. "It is."

"And this is the place where you first told me that you loved me."

I smiled. "It is. It's also the place where I asked you to marry me."

"What?" I had Kayo's full attention then. Her dark blue eyes were wide and she was twirling a lock of hair with her finger. It was something she did whenever she got nervous. "You never asked me to…"

She gasped as I opened the ring box to expose the piece of expensive jewelry. "Kayo, will you marry me?"

"Oh, Izzy… Of course I'll be Mrs. Koushiro Izumi!" She gave me several kisses all over. "I love you."

"I love you too." I kissed her back on her precious soft lips.

Our wedding that took place about six months later turned out nice! Everyone was there, my beauty was dressed in white, and I felt six feet tall! After the ceremony, we had our reception at this huge hotel ballroom. It was fully decorated with elegant cutlery, fancy table cloths, and a well dressed band in the background. "Okay, ladies and gentlemen, let's get on the dance floor and celebrate the new addition to the Izumi family!" The head vocalist said.

Everyone cheered as a few bold people stood up and started dancing. I was just sitting at my table while Kayo was talking to family. "Congratulations, Izzy!" Matt told me.

"Yeah, I know you guys will be happy forever." said a very pregnant Sora. She and Matt have been married for three years and are about to have their first child.

"Thanks." I smiled.

"And what a beautiful wife she makes too!" Tai added.

"I'm so happy for you." Mimi came up to me next.

"What are you going to do now that you're married?" Cody asked.

Before I could answer, Kayo came over and sat on my lap. "Now, that we're married," she answered, "we're going to buy a house to put all of these wedding gifts in."

"That's great!" He sat down. "I'm just going to put things out there. I have a girlfriend!"

"Cody, that's great!" I told him. "Is she here?"

"Unfortunately, she's not. Her name is Terri and she's visiting her father in Hong Kong." He said. "She'll be back tomorrow morning."

"Well, that's great anyway."

"Let's make a toast to the newlyweds!" T.K. cheered, raising a glass.

"To the newlyweds!" Everyone cheered.

About year after that, I've gotten the best news ever! At the time, I just came back from the Digital World and Kayo was dressed in her (and my) favorite sundress. It was white with yellow flowers all over and a bright yellow band that goes from under the bust and ties around the back. She also had her hair in a similar fashion. There were two small braids on both sides of her hairline that met in the middle by a small hair clip with the rest of her hair flowing down. Her smile was bright as she greeted me with a hug and a kiss. "Welcome home!" She cheered. "I cleaned up the whole house!"

"How long have you been home?" I asked.

"I worked through lunch so I could come home early." She grabbed my hand. "Take me to the park."

"Why?"

"Well, I'm wearing a sundress. Let's go out into the sun!" She seemed so excited.

"Okay." I held her hand as we got into the car.

I didn't know what was going on. Kayo was excited but at the same time, she was nervous. She was twirling her hair but at the same time, she was happy. When I finally parked the car and turned it off, she nearly ran out and grabbed my hand. Then, she pulled me to our park bench as I tried my best not to step on her white flip flops. She sat me down and took a deep breath. "I need to tell you something important." She held my hands tight. "First of all, do you know where we are?"

I smiled. "The park bench."

"Not just any park bench. This park bench was the place we shared our first kiss, our first I-love-you, and our wedding proposal. Plus, it's the park bench where I told you that…" she paused for suspense "…we'll be having our first child!"

My eyes widened. "Me? A father?" I nearly jumped off of the bench. "I'm going to be a daddy!"

It was the happiest moment of my life at the time until seven months and two weeks later when Kayo was calling me while I was at the super market. "Koushiro," she would call me whenever she was very serious, "come home. I need you."

"What is it?" I asked, dropping the can of soup I was holding.

"My water broke."

"Already? But the baby isn't due for another month and two weeks!"

"Please hurry." I could hear the tears traveling down her soft cheeks. "I'm in so much pain."

As fast as I could, I left the basket where it was and dashed to my car. "I'm coming. Don't worry. I'll be there in two point four minutes."

"Izzy, you can't make it in that time."

"I'll try." I hung up the phone and was on my way home.

An hour later, we were in the hospital room. Of course, I was nervous as any other first time father would, but I couldn't let Kayo see that. So I kept a smile on my face and I kept telling her how strong she was and all of the good memories we shared. The doctor called for an emergency C-section because of the baby being premature, so he sent me into the waiting room while they got ready for the operation.

When I got there, Mom and Dad were sitting hand in hand. They were obviously just as nervous. Once they saw me, Mom jumped out of her seat and hugged me. "Oh, honey, we came as soon as you didn't answer your phone." She said.

"And there wasn't anyone at home." Dad added. "We called everyone to see where you were but they had no idea. We just assumed you were here."

"Yes, I'm here." I smiled.

"Me too!" I heard a familiar voice call. It was Tai with Kari. "We got here as soon as we heard the call."

"I'm so excited!" Kari cheered. "Is it a boy or a girl?"

"We don't know." I told them. "We wanted to keep it a surprise."

"Hey, that's okay too." Mom said. "I can't wait!"

As they started chattering, I couldn't help but to notice a distant figure in the background. It was coming closer and closer. Once it was at a close enough point, I saw that it was Mimi. She looked depressed as her arms were crossed and her chin almost made contact with her chest. "Hi, Mimi!" I called, causing her to snap her head upward.

"Izzy, what are you doing here?" She asked.

"My wife is in labor." I told her with a huge smile on my face. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm just visiting my son." She smiled. "The doctor said I should be able to take him home next week. I just hope he's okay."

"You had your baby?" Tai asked. "Where was I?"

"I tried calling you, but you didn't answer." She smacked him on the shoulder playfully. "His name is Makoto and he's almost one year old. He was born prematurely and didn't develop properly so they have to do some…stuff."

"Mr. and Mrs. Izumi," the doctor called, referring to my mom and I, "are you ready to witness a miracle?"

I held Mom's hand as I nodded. "Ready!" Mom answered. "This is so exciting! I'm going to be a grandmother!" That's just like my mother to turn nerves into a smile! I loved how she would turn every nerve-wracking moment into an adventure. For a perfect example would be when we had to put on scrubs. Sure, I looked ridiculous putting on the space suit looking thing, but Mom couldn't stop giggling. "Izzy, look at us!" She laughed. "We look like we're in space suits! I'm just glad no one could see us! That would be humiliating, wouldn't it?"

"You're telling me!" I laughed with her.

She grabbed my hand. "Come on! Let's get in there before we miss the baby being born!" She was brave enough to open the door.

I stepped into the room with great caution, seeing first the four doctors surrounding my wife's bottom half with some sort of drape separating it from the top half. She had tears in her eyes but, when she saw me, she instantly lit up. "I'm here, Kayo." I told her.

"I was wondering when you'd get here."

I leaned in a kissed her forehead. "How are you feeling?"

"Pressure." She told me. "I'm feeling pressure on my stomach."

Next, Mom leaned in and kissed Kayo on the cheek. "Everything's going to be fine." She told her. "Do you think it's going to be a boy or a girl?"

"A boy." Kayo answered without a doubt or a second of thought.

"She's always saying how she wants a boy." I explained. "But I think…"

Before I could answer, a shrill noise sent chills down my spine: the cry of our new baby. I spun around as quickly as my body could turn. "Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Izumi!" The doctor said. "It's a girl!"

"We have a daughter!" I nearly yelled.

"I have a granddaughter!" Mom cheered.

"Come on, Daddy, let's cut the umbilical cord." One of the female doctors told me.

At that moment, I thought I was going to faint but there I was, cutting an umbilical cord! I felt like I was on top of the world! Once the doctors left to clean her up and my wife, I kissed her goodbye, stripped off the scrubs, and went back into the lobby with Mom. "It's a girl!" I shouted.

Everyone erupted with "Congratulations" and "it's a girl" and many hugs and kisses. "What are you going to name her?" Mimi asked.

"We haven't decided that yet." I sighed in relief. "I'm so happy!"

"Mr. Izumi, your wife is doing just fine. She wants to see you now." The female doctor told me.

I nodded to her before saying to the rest "I'll be back." I skipped into the room as happy as a clam just to see my wife the same way, but she wasn't. Her face was scrunched up in pain as sweat went down her face. "Kayo, are you okay?" At this point she was lying down on a regular hospital bed with the covers pulled to her chin. "What's the matter?"

"I'm in pain…" She said with a small voice. "…from the surgery."

"Let me call a doctor." I said, ready to sprint out of the room but she stopped me.

"Don't."

"But you're hurt…" I sat on the nearest chair next to her bed and held her hands.

"It's not that bad. I just want some water."

"Would Daddy like to hold the baby?" One of the male doctors came in with our little miracle. Apparently, I didn't have a choice, seeing as he was already handing over the baby.

"Doctor, should I be feeling pain?" Kayo asked.

He turned around with much seriousness. "It's normal, but I'll inform the other doctors and get you something to stop it. Is it severe?"

She shook her head. "No, I can handle it."

The doctor nodded before leaving the room. Once he did, I looked down at the baby who was looking back at me. "She's beautiful." I said. "What should we name her?"

"I don't know." Kayo took a good look at our daughter who was bundled in her blanket. "She has your beautiful eyes."

"Beautiful eyes…" I repeated, looking at her. "Hitomi."

"That's beautiful." Kayo smiled. "Hitomi Izumi. I love it." She reached a hand and caressed the baby's cheek. Then, she put her hand back underneath the covers and drifted to sleep. She must've been very tired.

"Hitomi Izumi, we'll be together forever." I told her. "We'll be closer than anything possible."

And I continued to keep my promise eleven years later when it all went downhill.

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A/N: So that's the first chapter! I hope you liked it! If you did, give me a review! And if you didn't, still review! In my next chapter, I'll add a different point of view at some point. So you're just going to have to wait for that!


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: How do you like it so far?

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Chapter 2

Two days ago is when we noticed something was wrong in the relationship. Now is when Digimon were like dogs: everyone had one. Everyone loved them except for Kayo. I didn't even know why she didn't like them. She just said that they freak her out. I bet it was because of Tentomon appearing to be an insect Digimon. Kayo would just throw a fit whenever I mentioned having one. Take Hitomi's eleventh birthday for example.

I was woken up by my very excited daughter and the rays of sunshine. "Dad, wake up!" She cheered. "Mom, get up!"

"What is it, baby?" Kayo asked with a yawn.

"It's my birthday!" She yelled. "I turn eleven!"

"I know." I laughed at her enthusiasm. "Unfortunately, it's on a weekday."

"But, Dad, it's summertime! Can't you stay home with me?"

"I'm sorry, but I can't." I answered.

"Mom, can _you_ stay home with me?"

Kayo didn't answer. Instead, she looked at the clocked and hopped out of bed. "Sorry, hon, but I'm late for work!" She ran into the bathroom at a breakneck pace, leaving little Hitomi with her head hung low. If only I could do something…

"Hitomi…" She looked up faster than the speed of light. "How would you like to come to work with me?" I whispered. If Kayo found out that she was going to the Digital World, she'd probably flip!

"Really?" She whispered back. I knew she was dying to go there. She never told me but whenever I talked about work, I would have her full attention.

"Really. But you have to keep it a secret until Mom comes home from work." She nodded. "Good. Go get out of your PJs and put on some fun clothes." She nodded again and ran out just in time for Kayo to enter fully dressed.

"What did you tell her?" She asked.

"Oh, nothing." I got out of bed and rummaged the closet for clothes to wear. "I just told her that she could come to work with me."

"To the Digital World?" She asked as if I were bringing her to some kind of sludge factory.

"Yes." I answered as casual as possible even though I was nervous about what she had to say. "That's where I have her present."

"What are you getting her?"

"Oh, you know…" I didn't finish the sentence. A few seconds of silence passed.

"You're getting her a Digimon, aren't you? Izzy, we talked about this."

"No, we didn't." I told her. "You just ordered me to take away a child's happiness. Come on, Kayo, let her have a Digimon. She's eleven now. She can take care of one."

"No, I don't want one in my house."

"It's _our_ house and I would like Hitomi to have a Digimon."

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because they'll leave messes everywhere. We'll have to feed them and everything and I don't have the time to clean after any animal."

"That's where you're wrong, Kayo. These are Digital Monsters which means they could clean after themselves. You don't see Tentomon making a mess of things. He's been here plenty of times _and_ he's potty trained!" I had to bring up the time where she walked in on the Digimon while he was on the toilette and reading a newspaper. I found it hilarious and something you see only on cartoons, but she thought otherwise.

She blushed. "Yes, I know he's potty trained, but what about the one you want to give her? Is _it_ potty trained?"

"It's not going to be a baby. Of course he'll be potty trained."

"He?"

"Yes, his name is Motimon."

"Still, I don't want it in the house." She started walking out the door.

"But everyone else has one!" I called after her.

"No! End of discussion!" She slammed the door behind her.

I sighed. She's so controlling. She wants everything her way. It's so frustrating! "Hitomi!" I yelled. "Are you ready?"

She came in wearing her favorite dress. It was a simple green jumper that she wore over a long-sleeved paler green shirt. "I'm ready to go! But first, I want to show you the picture I drew!" She held up a piece of paper that had a strange but almost accurate sketch of some kind of monkey/ cat creature. "I call it a rammcat! He goes crazy a lot! Sometimes when he's really crazy, he'll thrash stuff like Mom does!"

"Like Mom?"

"Yes." She sighed. "Mom likes to thrash things." She took the picture back, folded it, and shoved it into her pocket. "So are we ready or what? I can't wait to go!"

"Yep! Let's go!" I took her hand and led her into the computer room. As ironic as it may seem, I wasn't the only one to use it. In fact, I'm not the one spending most of my time here. It was actually Hitomi. She gets on the computer whenever I'm not on it. Even when she was a baby, me typing on this very keyboard put her to sleep. Even now, she would occasionally stay here almost all night on the weekends.

"Why are we here?" She asked.

"I always go into the Digital World through a Digi-port which is through this computer."

"That has to be prodigious!" She clapped.

"It is." I brought out my Digivice and opened the port. "Are you scared?" She shook her head. "Are you excited?" She nodded her head vigorously. "Then let's go in!" She squeezed my hand tightly as we went through the screen and entered an amazing world.

_Zip! Zip! Zip!_

"Wow, Dad!" Hitomi cheered right after her feet made contact with the discolored surface. "It's beautiful!"

"Come with me." I told her as we headed into a town. "I have your birthday present in my office."

"Okay." She was so happy, I could tell!

"Izzy!" I heard someone call. It was a voice all too familiar.

"Tentomon, hi!" I called back. My friend flopped onto my head from the sky. "How's it going?"

"Well, I've been better." He sighed. "I'm dying from anticipation! Have you given her the present yet?"

"Not yet."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" He hopped down and stood in front of Hitomi. "You're going to love your present, Hitomi. I know I do."

She smiled. "It's nice to see you, Tentomon." Hitomi bent down and gave him a kiss on his forehead.

"You know I'm always happy to see you, Hitomi." He said. "I would return the favor but, sadly, I don't have lips."

"Come on! Let's go get your present!" I anticipated.

"Okay, Dad, race you to your office!" And just like that, she took off.

"But, Hitomi, you don't know where it is!" I shouted after her.

"I'll guide her!" Tentomon cheered, flying off. "Now, hurry or you'll lose!"

I smiled at the adorable, memorable picture. My daughter and one of my oldest friends playing together. I might as well join them! "Hey, wait up!" I ran after them.

_Pant! Pant! Pant!_

Once we finally got to the tall building, Hitomi was nearly jumping with joy. "Calm down, Hitomi." I smiled. "Don't act like a rammcat!"

"Right, Dad, but I'm so excited! You and Tentomon keep telling me that this is going to be the best present ever!"

"And it is." I told her before knocking on the door.

"Digi Digi!" A voice called. It was most likely Jim, Joe's brother.

"Mon Mon!" I said back. And it was Jim who opened the door. "Jim, I would like you to meet my daughter, Hitomi." Then to her, I said "Hitomi, this is Jim, Joe's brother. We work together."

"So you're the birthday girl?" He asked, bending down to her level. "You look just like your dad when he was your age. You were even the same height!"

"You were short when you were little, Dad?"

I blushed. "Yeah, but that was when I was little."

"I don't know. I still have a full head over you." Jim laughed.

"Let's just get Hitomi's present." I grabbed my daughter's hand and pushed passed Jim before he could make another embarrassing remark.

"Yay!" She skipped her way to the elevator with me in tow. For a split second, I forgot who was leading who!

"Close your eyes." I told her. "It's a surprise." She did what she was told as we headed up the elevator and to my desk. "Okay, are you ready?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, hold out your hand." She did and I carefully placed something special in it. Then, I carefully rolled up her tiny hand and placed it behind her back. "Open your eyes."

As soon as she did, she saw her very own Motimon standing and smiling there. Then, she looked at what I placed into her hand: her very own Digivice. "Wow! You guys were right! This is the best present in the world!" She dropped down to her knees and hugged her new Digimon. "Thanks, Dad! I love him!" She put Motimon down and got a good look at him. "Hi, Motimon, I'm Hitomi."

"Hitomi?" Motimon asked. "That's a pretty name!"

"Thank you." She blushed at her complement.

"Why don't you two go play. I'll come get you in eight hours." I told them.

"Okay, Dad!"

_Run! Run! Run!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Run! Run! Run!_

Motimon and I were having so much fun! We were running around, telling stories, and playing pretend! I know I'm eleven and playing pretend is too young for me but I like to do it every now and again.

It was obvious when lunch time came around. Motimon stopped playing and his stomach started to growl. "Come on. Let's go back to Dad's office. Maybe he'll have something for us." I told him.

"No need! Let's go to the restaurant!" Motimon pointed to an old looking building.

"But I don't have any money."

"You don't need money!" He cheered. "Your dad and Joe are friends and Joe doesn't pay at the restaurant because he saved the manager or something. Come on!"

"Well, okay." I picked up my new Digimon and ran to the building he was pointing to. But when we got there, I had second thoughts. "Wait a minute, Motimon. We can't go in there. What if we get in trouble? Dad could take you away from me."

Motimon scratched his head. "You're right. Let's go."

With our stomachs empty and our hearts sunken, we decided to turn around. "Maybe we could ask Dad to…"

"Ask Dad to what?" I looked up and saw Dad smiling at me with Tentomon on his side. "Are you hungry?"

"Yes." I answered as I grabbed his hand. "Motimon wants to eat at the restaurant."

Dad looked at the building and back at me. "I'm afraid the building's abandoned."

"Oh no." Motimon pouted. "If I don't eat something soon, I'm going to die!"

Dad chuckled. "Luckily for you, Joe came in with pizza. Come on." He guided us into the building, and as we were five feet from inside, I could smell the deliciousness!

_Chomp! Chomp! Chomp!_

"I can't believe I ate so much pizza." Motimon complained. I could barely stand up myself. We were lying on our backs on the floor in Dad's office, trying to digest four slices of bread, cheese, sauce, and pepperoni. We couldn't help it! The pizza was so good! Jim said that Joe got it from a new place just for my birthday. Of course I was happy! Then again, I would be happy either way as long as I'm with my new Digimon.

"I can't believe it either!" I sighed. Now that we weren't playing, I figured that I should play around and experiment with my new Digivice. Dad never told me how it worked. It was plausible that he knows that I loved to crack mysteries on my own. Unfortunately, my Digivice wasn't in my pocket. "I probably left my Digivice somewhere." I told him. "Let me go look for it."

"I'll be here." Motimon said. "I don't think I can move!"

I shot him a smile before rolling over to my stomach. "I'll be right back." I pushed myself upward and headed towards the doorknob. The handle was cold against my skin as I pushed it down. I slowly pushed the door open when I noticed that the adults were talking. I was always told to never interrupt. I only opened the door a crack when I heard what was going on.

Dad wasn't eating. He was just leaning on a table as Jim, Tentomon, and Mr. Takenouchi made a semi-circle around him. They all had on concern faces. "I don't know what to do." Dad told them.

"I'm sure she'll understand." Mr. Takenouchi said. "I know Sora gets this way when I tell her something like that. I know she's your little girl, Izzy, but you have to tell her the truth."

"He's right." Jim said. "Remember, a spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down."

Dad sighed. "I just wish that I didn't have to. You've already seen Hitomi and Motimon bond instantly. It was love at first sight. How can I tell her that Kayo won't let her take him home? She's going to be devastated."

I refused to hear anymore so I slowly closed the door. I was frozen. I couldn't believe what I just heard. My hand was stuck on the doorknob as I stared at the door. "Hitomi? Are you okay?" Motimon asked.

"No." I finally gathered the strength to turn around and sit next to my friend. "We've been together for five hours and we're already going to be forced to split up."

"What do you mean?"

"I heard Dad talking. He says my mom won't let me take you home. It's not fair. All of my friends have Digimon."

"They do?"

My friend, Motimon, is wise. I know he's seeing through me. He can see the only darkness in my life. "No," a few tears fell down my cheeks, "I don't have any."

"You don't?" He stood up. "Really?"

"Really." I sobbed. "Everyone at school picks on me because I'm just a big nerd. And not just any nerd but a computer nerd. I don't have anyone to call my friend except for you."

"I'm sure there's a way to get around this."

"No, there isn't. Mom won't let me take you."

"What if she doesn't know about me?" My head turned in a sharp motion. "Yeah, just hide me. I'm sure you can keep a secret."

"No, not from Mom. She finds out everything she needs to know."

"Everything?" Motimon asked.

"Yes, everything." I sighed. "I don't know how I'm going to do it."

Before Motimon could come up with a solution, if he could, Dad entered the room to see me on my knees, crying. "Hitomi, what's the matter?" He knelt down and put a hand on my shoulder. It was his normal Dad thing. "Baby, tell me what the problem is. It's your birthday. You shouldn't be crying."

"Dad, I love my present." I sobbed. "I want him to live with me. He doesn't even like it in the Digital World."

"All of my friends are on Earth." Motimon sighed. "I really like hanging out with Hitomi."

"Please, let me take him home!" I grabbed Dad as tightly as I could as if I could embrace his understanding. "I don't have any other friends! Please!"

He didn't say anything at first. He was silent. He must've been thinking of a way to lay down the hard truth. Now, I had to get ready to take the blow and accept the back-stabbing. He sighed. "Hitomi, I can't… We can't bring Motimon home but you could visit him every day."

"It's not fair! Everyone gets everything I don't! Everyone has a Digimon! Everyone has friends! I don't even have a cell phone and it wouldn't matter if you gave one to me because I have no one to call!" I sighed, trying my best to calm down. I assumed that Jim and Mr. Takenouchi could hear me yelling. "I've been a good person. I deserve to have something nice."

He gave me a kiss on the forehead and hugged me again as if this were a nonverbal sign that everything would be okay. It was a typical parent cliché that I've stopped believing since I was six. "Okay," he said, "I'll tell you what. We're going to do something bold and daring, alright?"

"Dad, you're going to do something bold and daring?" I asked in disbelief. "Isn't that in Tai's department?"

He gave me a smirk. "Yes, but since it's your birthday, I'm willing to do this for you." He looked at the clock. "We could sneak back home before Mom gets there and hide Motimon there."

"Really?" I shrieked. "Oh, Daddy, thank you!" I wrapped my arms around his neck and squeezed as hard as I could. "We should get home soon! Mom will be home in twenty-three point eighteen minutes!"

Dad only chuckled at my comment. Then he stood out and extended his arm. "Come on before Mom beats us home."

I took his hand into mine as a nonverbal acceptance to his everything-will-be-okay cliché. "Come on, Motimon."

"Yay! I'm going home with my best friend!" He cheered, jumping into my arms.

_Zip! Zip! Zip!_

"Shh… Motimon, you have to stay quiet." I whispered to my Digimon. I just finished feeding him a well snuck spaghetti dinner. Mom was suspicious when I asked her to eat in my room. Dad obviously was ecstatic about it, but Mom had her doubts. This only led to them arguing a bit, which I was used to. Then they sent me to my room with my plate because they were about to fight, which I wasn't used to. I was just eager to hear what they were talking about so I had to keep Motimon quiet.

"Can you hear anything?" He whispered.

"Yeah, I think so." I opened the door just a crack to hear a little better.

"Let her have one." Dad said.

"No, we can't afford it!" Mom raised her voice. "It's a Digimon, Koushiro, which means it could break things! Izzy, be smart about this! We can't afford to replace everything it breaks!"

"We wouldn't have to!" Dad matched her tone. "A Digimon's sole purpose is to protect. That means if Hitomi ever runs into trouble, Motimon will be there to protect her. It's a good investment, Kayo. Plus, they make good friends."

"She has plenty of friends at school!"

Dad got silent for a moment. "That's not what she told me." He said quietly and almost inaudible. "She told me that she didn't have any. That's why we should let her have this Digimon."

"No!" She yelled. "Why do you do this to me? Why must you always side against me? If I don't want a Digimon, shouldn't that be the end of the discussion?" I heard a few dishes clank, meaning she was probably washing them. Usually, she would wash them herself whenever she got stressed. "I'm tired. I'm going to bed. Are you coming?"

"What do you mean I always side against you?" Dad asked. I heard them walking until the footsteps stopped. I assume they're next to the master bedroom.

Mom sighed. "Every chance you get, you argue against me. When we got married, we used to make decisions together but now you want to debate everything. You're just like Cody."

"Hey, leave Cody out of this!" Dad raised his voice. "Let me tell you that I don't always choose to side against you. It's just that you side against _me!_"

"I do not!"

"Yes, you do! I wanted to go to Hawaii for our vacation. Hitomi agreed but you threw a fit, saying how much you want to go to Rome!"

"You're right." She sighed. "You don't always side against me, but you do always make me seem like the bad guy!"

"I do not!"

"You always bring Hitomi into everything, and you know how much she sides with you!" Mom yelled. "You spoil her!"

"Don't bring Hitomi into this! She didn't do anything wrong! I just thought that a Digimon would be a good thing for her!"

"And I said no! You just want her to have a Digimon because you had one when you were her age! Would you stop living in the past?"

"I live in the past? _You're_ the one who's too into the future! You won't lighten up and have fun in the present!"

"Don't you talk about me like that, Koushiro! In fact, just don't talk to me at all!" I heard a door open and Mom's voice becoming more distant.

"No, we have to talk this through!" Dad called out to her.

"I said that I don't want to!" Mom yelled even louder. Dad shouted something else but the door closed. That's when I did the same.

"Is everything okay?" Motimon asked.

I didn't answer him at first. Instead, I crawled into bed. Maybe this was all a bad dream. Maybe I can wake up in the morning and found it all gone. That's what I loved about tomorrow. It's always better than today. I shut my eyes as tightly as possible, hoping that this all wasn't really. Mom and Dad aren't fighting. They're definitely not fighting because of Motimon. They're not fighting because of me. They're just talking. Tomorrow, they'll be kissing like normal. Or not. It's not okay. "No."

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So there's chapter 2! Give a review please!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: This might be my longest story to be posted! I hope you don't get bored reading it!

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Chapter 3

I woke up the next morning with almost no motivation. There was no drive. My wife could be leaving me. She was already mad at me. I tossed around in bed, rolling over to the other side only to see my wife already up. The master bathroom was open and I watched as she brushed her beautiful hair. She did it in the same quick motion from the top of her head down below her shoulders. I watched for a few more seconds until she saw me. "Oh, you're up." She said, going back to her hair. This time, she was throwing it back into a ponytail. "I wanted to tell you before I left that I'll be a little late tonight."

"Again?" I asked. "You've been out every day this week."

"Yes, and I'm going to be late again." She made sure it was placed in the right spot then tugged her hair on the sides to make sure the rubber band was wrapped tightly.

"What for?"

She turned towards me in a sharp motion with her ponytail bouncing. "What do you mean: what for?"

"Why are you going to be late?" I asked a little more firmly. I knew she heard me. She's just surprised that I finally asked.

"I have some work to do," She told me, "so I'm going to take extra time to do it."

"Oh?"

"Yes. Plus, my boss wants to promote someone to manager. Do you know what'll happen if I get that position?"

"You'll work even later." I told her point blank. "I don't think Hitomi would like that."

"It wouldn't matter. She's just a child. If she doesn't like it at first, she'll warm up to it." She turned around and started applying her makeup. "It just takes some time."

"That shouldn't be the situation, though." I objected, getting out of bed.

"Why not?"

"Because children worry too."

"They shouldn't." She put down her foundation and picked up a different brush. "They don't have anything to worry about. And you could just tell her what I told you. I'm working late."

"You know, kids watch a lot of TV."

She put down her brush and looked at me. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, that on TV, there is a lot of talk about couples who cheat on each other. What if she jumps to conclusions?"

She furrowed her brow. "You think I'm cheating on you?"

"I didn't say that."

"You didn't have to." She went back to her makeup. "Why would you accuse me of cheating on you?"

"Well, you do say 'I have to work late' more times than we've ever done anything together. It's like we live in two different worlds or something."

She put down her makeup. "You're right." She snapped her neck towards me with a disturbed face. "I live in the Real World and you live in the Digital World!"

"Oh, don't start that again!"

"Start what?"

"You know what I'm talking about! Stop treating me like I'm an alien! So what if I'm a DigiDestined…" Oh boy. I forgot…

"You're a what?"

I forgot to tell her. "Nothing."

"No, what is a DigiDestined? Is that some kind of nerd club?"

I sighed. "No, it's not. When I was Hitomi's age, my friends and I were sent to the Digital World to save it from dark forces."

She just looked at me. "Are you sure that's not one of your nerd clubs?"

"I'm sure." I told her. "Point being, you have to stop treating me like I was born there. I live in the Real World like you."

"It sure doesn't seem like it." She said under her breath but loud enough for me to hear, which got me angry. At the time, she was putting her makeup back into her purse.

"Don't you have to go to work?"

"I'm leaving!" She slung her purse over her shoulder. "I hope you can make Hitomi breakfast and dinner!" She yelled as she swung the door open.

"I'd end up doing it anyway!" I yelled back. "I hope you have fun living at work!" Luckily, she caught that before slamming the door. She wasn't even considerate enough to lock the door, so I got up and did it myself. Then, I looked at the window and saw her driving away in her car.

"Dad…?" Hitomi spoke with a small voice, making me turn around as fast as I could. I noticed that she was holding Motimon like a teddy bear. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, everything's going to be fine!" I lied. "Mom's just going to be late coming home."

"Again?"

I sighed. "Yes."

"Are you guys going to get a divorce?"

"No!" I defended. Two days from then, that would be a lie. At the moment, I just didn't want Hitomi to worry. "Don't worry, we're not."

"But you guys were fighting." She made her way into the kitchen. "Was it because of me?"

"Hitomi, why would you say that?"

"Because I heard you." She sighed. "You were talking about me having a Digimon. Then Mom acted like a rammcat and bizzled."

"Bizzled?"

"Yeah, she bizzled. It means that she went crazy. I made it up."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah." She sat Motimon down at the table and opened the refrigerator. "Dad, can I make scrambled eggs?"

"You know how?"

"Yeah, Mom taught me." She brought out the carton. "So can I or will you bizzle out?"

I chuckled. "I won't bizzle out."

"Good." She smiled before bringing out a bowl and a fork. "Motimon, you're going to like my eggs! Dad, I'll make you some too!"

"That's very nice of you, Hitomi." I told her. "Thank you."

While she got started with the eggs, I stayed in the living room to keep a close eye on her. The last thing I need is for her to burn herself. She's such a precious child. I really saw them in these pictures of the family we had in perfectly aligned frames on the wall. They were taken every year since Hitomi was born. It was ten years of family bliss. We all had joyful faces. Nothing was wrong. We didn't have a care in the world. But that seemed like a long time ago. We were due to take another picture soon, but unlike the old pictures, this one will be a lie. Our smiles wouldn't be real. It'll just be taped together. Fighting in the family affects everyone. I started to consider telling Hitomi what happens in reality. Parents divorce all of the time.

"Hitomi…" I started. I wanted to take it back but I had to talk to her plus I already had her attention and a plate of her eggs on my lap.

"Eat up! Tell me what you think!" She took the fork and shoveled some into my mouth. Her smile was the hugest I've ever seen as she waited for my answer. The truth was that the eggs were wonderful! It was nice and buttery with the right amount of salt and pepper. "Good, right?"

"Very good, Hitomi!" I smiled. "These have to be the best I've ever tasted, and I'm not just saying that because you're my daughter."

"Thanks, Dad." She kissed me on the cheek. "So did you want to tell me something?"

I sighed and put the plate onto the coffee table. "Yes."

She sat down next to me. "What is it?" She asked, filled with concerned.

"I just wanted to tell you that things happen." I was sitting there like an idiot, trying to find the words. "Sometimes, these things happen for the better." I looked at our last family photo. Seeing Kayo's smiling face seemed like a thing in the past. I haven't seen that smile since that day. "When someone's not happy with something, they could always change it."

"Dad, what are you saying?" I looked into those deep black eyes I gave her.

"Mom's not happy."

"I know." She sighed. "It's because she spends all of her time at work and you spend all of her time in the Digital World. I heard you two yelling."

"You did?" She nodded. "Well…" I sighed. "I don't know what I'm going to do."

"Are you going to make me give up Motimon?"

"No!" I stood up. "Better yet, I'll fight for him."

"Don't!" My daughter shouted, springing off of the couch. "Don't do that!"

"Why not?"

"Don't fight. Just talk." She said. "Fighting always leads to separation."

I knelt down to her level. "Hon, it's only an expression. I'm not going to fight. I'll talk to her." Words, I thought, weren't the only things that could heal a wounded heart. With that, I held out my arms and pulled her in and embraced my daughter's warmth. "Don't worry so much, okay?"

"Okay, Dad." She hugged me back.

At that point, I was worried. What if Kayo and I ended up getting a divorce? Hitomi will be crushed.

_Hours! Hours! Hours!_

Around eight that night, Hitomi, Motimon, and I arrived home from a dinner date with Mom. Unfortunately, Kayo didn't call and tell me when she was going to be back. I naturally assumed that she would be here around seven seeing as she usually got off of work at five. Two hours should be plenty of time for overtime work. Right?

However, we came home to an empty house. No Kayo in sight. "Mom must be working really late." Hitomi said before stifling a yawn. "I'm tired. I'm going to get ready for bed and digest all of Grandma's food!"

"Okay." I gave her a kiss on the forehead. "See you in the morning. Goodnight, Motimon."

"Goodnight, Dad!" He said before hopping on Hitomi's shoulder. "We're going to sleep well tonight!"

After I brushed my teeth, slipped into comfortable pajamas, and climbed into bed, I noticed something wrong. I couldn't describe the feeling but I knew that something was misplaced. I couldn't put my finger on it as I tossed and turned.

"Daddy…?" I heard a voice say about half an hour later. I turned my attention towards the door to see that it was Hitomi and Motimon.

"What is it, Hitomi?" I asked with great concern as all dads would. "Are you okay?"

"It's just that…" She sighed, not being able to find the words. "Can I sleep with you?"

I nodded before she set a sleepy Motimon on the bed and climbed in herself. "Is it Mom?" I asked her.

"She's still not here." She told me. "I wonder if she's really working. Do you think she might be…?"

"Hitomi," I snapped, making her hush up, "don't say things like that about Mom. I trust her. Now, get some sleep." I wrapped an arm around her and pulled her in for another embrace. "Don't worry so much."

"I won't."

"Do you promise?"

She giggled. "No, I can't promise that."

"Why not?"

"I promise not to worry _as_ much, but I _will_ bizzle if there's a problem."

I kissed her on the forehead. "There's no problem."

"If you say so…"

"Hey, I want to get in!" Motimon shouted as he crawled in between Hitomi and me. He sighed. "That's better."

"Is everyone comfortable?" I asked them. Once they didn't answer, I said "Good. Now, let's get some sleep."

_Snore! Snore! Snore!_

I didn't fall asleep like Hitomi and Motimon. Instead, I was awake, sitting on the corner of the bed with my legs crossed Indian Style and my arms folded. My eyes were closed but I was in a deep thought. Why isn't she home yet? What could possibly take her so long? My eyes sprang open an hour later when I heard the doorknob jiggling. I figured it was Kayo, so I scooped up Hitomi as carefully as I could and carried her to her room. As I crossed the front door, it swung open to reveal Kayo. Once she saw me carrying Hitomi and Motimon, her lips began to press together as she stared at me with anger. I only stared at her back with the same anger for a second before continuing to Hitomi's room. After putting her and Motimon to bed, I stormed out and into the master bedroom.

"Kayo, why are you so late? It's almost ten o'clock!" I yelled once the door was closed. "Hitomi was so worried about you!"

"And what about you? You're not off the hook either! I told you no Digimon, Koushiro!" She yelled back, throwing her purse to the ground.

"I'm not the one to blame here! You're the one who thinks she can come in at all hours of the night! Hitomi really missed you!"

"This is ridiculous. Can we just fight on one thing?" She sighed and unbuttoned her top. "First of all, why did you get her a Digimon when I said she can't have one?"

"You're over reacting! That Digimon has been here all day today and yesterday and you didn't notice him until now. What does that say?"

"It says while I'm working my butt off, you're goofing around with a filthy monster!" She slipped on a T-shirt and started taking off her skirt and stockings. "Koushiro, you deliberately went behind my back and disobeyed my request."

"Request? If it was a request, than you wouldn't take it seriously!"

"Koushiro, that's not the point! The point is that you're not listening to me! You never do what I say! You never consider what I have to say! You just go off and do whatever you want!" She put on a pair of pajama pants.

"I never do whatever I want because you're always off somewhere!"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that I want to be with you. That's why we got married! Remember?"

"Yes, I remember." She stormed into the bathroom and pulled out her toothbrush. "I thought when we were going to be married that you wanted to compromise with everything before you make stupid decisions."

"This decision isn't stupid! I believe that having a Digimon can do so much for her. It's done a lot for me."

"That was twenty-five years ago! Get over it!"

"No, I won't get over it! That journey changed my life for the better and you're treating it like it's nothing!"

"Well, it's not the whole world!" She started brushing her teeth.

"It is to me! Why else would I be working there?"

She just gave me a shrug and continued to brush vigorously.

"The girl doesn't have any friend besides Motimon. She said so herself."

"How will a Digimon help with that?" She asked after she rinsed.

"A Digimon can help with her self-esteem."

"Just take her to the park. She can meet people there." She grabbed a towel from the towel rack. "In the meantime, you can take that digital monster back from where it came from!"

"No!"

She put the towel down on the counter and placed her hands on her hips. "What did you say?"

I stepped into the bathroom so that she could hear me. "I said that I'm not taking the Digimon back and there's nothing you could do to make me take it back."

She was speechless. I could tell when she didn't answer and went back to washing the makeup off of her face.

"Now, I also wanted to bring up that your working too much."

"What makes you say that?"

"I've averaged the hours. You spend more time in your office than you do in our neighborhood! And like I said, Hitomi started to get worried! Why do you continue to put so much stress on our only daughter? Then you want to take away her only friend?"

"Stop making me sound like I'm heartless!" She yelled louder than I've ever heard from her. The windows probably rattled. "I'm not heartless!" A tear fell down Kayo's freshly cleaned cheek. "I work so I can make enough money for Hitomi to have nice things."

"Did you forget that we're married and that we both have salaries? I can pay for her to have nice things, too. You're not the only one who has to provide for this family." She didn't say anything. Her silence, it seemed, was telling me something. It was something I didn't want to hear. Then, I had to ask. "Are you seeing someone else?" She didn't say anything. It was the silence that said it all. It was the silence that well advertised guilt. "I can't believe this…" I stumbled out of the bathroom and collapsed onto the bed.

"Koushiro, it's not what you think."

"That's what they all say!" Kayo sat down next to me and I immediately stood back up. "Why would you do this? I thought you loved me. I thought you loved Hitomi."

"I _do_ love both of you."

"Then, why?" I asked, feeling that huge lump in my throat.

A tear went down her other cheek. "I was stressed."

"_You_ were stressed? Hitomi and I were worried about you!"

"Yes, I was stressed."

"So, what did you do?" She didn't say a word. Instead, she started sobbing. Usually, I would cower down to those tears and make everything right again, but I couldn't. I had the right to know what's going on. "Kayo, what did you do today?"

She took a deep breath. "I left work at the normal time and hung out with some friends."

"Where did you go for five hours?"

"I don't have to answer that." She stood up and started to walk away from the conversation, but I grabbed her wrist and pulled her back in.

"I said: where did you go for five hours?"

"I was nowhere!" She yelled.

I frowned. I hated getting so angry. It made me feel like a monster. I especially felt like the villain when I snatched her purse and opened it. That's when I saw three napkins with different phone numbers written on them. All three of them had a strong smell of liquor. Plus, there, in small print, read the words "TOM'S KAREOKE BAR AND POOL."

"You were at a bar?" I asked her. She didn't say anything. Again, it was the guilty silence. I dropped the purse and her wrist. "I can't believe you would betray my trust like this." I told her, my voice quiet. "I would never imagine such a beautiful woman like you would do this. You're married and you have a child."

"I told you I was stressed."

"What for? You have a good job and a family."

"That's just it! My boss isn't thinking of promoting someone. He's thinking of firing someone and that someone could be me!"

"So flirting with a guy…or guys…will change that?"

"I'm sorry."

"Well, you weren't sorry enough to not do it." My head was hung low. That's when I noticed something else from the purse. My eyes widened. "Kayo…"

"Koushiro, I was hoping that you wouldn't find out."

"You were going to keep this a secret from me? What are you doing with those other guys?" She didn't answer again. "Kayo, what are you doing with those other guys?" I asked again but she only gave me more silence. It was the guilty still kind that just lingered into the air. I felt like she just stabbed me into the stomach several times. I just couldn't wrap my mind around my wife doing…it…with three other guys. "Kayo, this is the worst thing you could do to a person! You betrayed me and I stuck up for you! Hitomi was right! She deserves to have that Digimon!"

"Koushiro, I said I was sorry. I won't go out with my friends anymore." She sobbed.

"That's not the point! Even if you did stop, you've already done what you did!" I sighed and sat on the bed. "I just don't know what to do."

"We can forget this whole thing ever happened." She said.

"No." I shook my head. "I don't think I could ever just forget it. I trusted you. I loved you." I picked up one of the napkins and looked at it. "Norio?" She gasped. "You and Norio…?"

"Koushiro, I…"

"I don't want to hear any more excuses."

"Fine." She picked up her purse and car keys. "I'm leaving."

"Why are you leaving?"

"Because," She said while putting on a pair of sneakers. "I'm not going to sit around here with a man who doesn't love me." Kayo stormed out of the master bedroom and opened the front door. Then, she just stood there for a while before saying "Plus, Hitomi likes you more." She slammed the door behind her, knocking over the last family photo. The glass shattered everywhere and mostly fell to her side.

"Daddy…?" Hitomi came out of her room with tears in her eyes.

"Hitomi…" I held out my arms as she ran into them. I held her tightly as she began to cry in my shoulder. As much as it pained me to lie to my only daughter, I couldn't help but to deceive her so she wouldn't worry. "Mom's coming back." I told her. But it wasn't a full lie. She has to come back. She left her stuff here. "Don't worry." I continued to say. "We just had a little fight."

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So that's the next chapter! Don't forget to leave me a review! If you review, then I know that someone's reading it!


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: Did you cry yet? :'( Well, that's okay if you didn't. Anyway, I didn't have time to read back and edit this, so if there are any grammatical errors, I apologize.

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Chapter 4

I didn't fall asleep that night. How could I? Hitomi was so upset about what happened. I was even shaken. Mom bizzled out. There was no doubt about that. Now, I was looking out my window as if somehow, she'll come back to the way she was before. Every second she didn't, hurt me just a bit more. I didn't know what I was going to do. More importantly, I didn't know how I'm going to keep myself strong in front of Hitomi. That's when I decided to call Tai. He was like an older brother to me.

"Tai…?" I said as soon as I heard the phone pick up on the other side.

"Yeah, this is Tai. Is this Izzy?"

"Yeah…" I looked back at the window, seeing that the sun was fully up now. The clock just turned ten.

"You sound…different. Do you have a cold or something?"

"No, but I don't feel so good."

"What's wrong?"

"I just really need to talk to you. It's kind of important."

"Sure Izzy. I'll be over there as fast as I can get my little one ready."

"Thank you so much, Tai." I hung up the phone. It took me a few seconds before I could recover or at least look like I recovered. "Hitomi!"

"Yes, Dad?" She called from the kitchen.

"Tai's coming over with his son, Yukio." I said. "So make sure you take care of him. Tai and I are going to have a private conversation."

"So you want me to play with Yukio?" She asked.

"Yes, and his Koromon."

"That's someone you could play with, Motimon!" She cheered.

"I'm glad you're excited to see them." I smiled. "Go ahead and clean up your room." She nodded before heading off.

_Clean! Clean! Clean!_

_Ding Dong!_ The doorbell rang an hour later. "Hitomi, is your room cleaned?" I shouted.

"Yes, bring in the squirt!"

Before I opened the door, I checked to make sure it was actually Tai, Yukio, and Koromon at the door. Once I saw the wild hair, I knew that it couldn't be anyone else! "Hi, Mr. Izumi!" Yukio waved.

I knelt down to the little Tai-look-alike. "Remember, Yukio, you can call me Izzy."

He smiled. "Okay, Izzy Izumi! Guess what!"

"What?"

"I turned five!" He held up his hand as a visual aid.

"Yukio, you turned five three months ago." Tai chuckled.

"So?" Yukio looked at his dad.

Tai laughed again. "Go play with Hitomi. She'll take care of you while Izzy and I talk boring grown up talk."

"Okay." He looked down at his Digimon. "Come on, Koromon! I heard that Hitomi got a new Digimon!" And with that, he ran towards her room.

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

The door opened while I was on my new laptop that Mom gave me. I figured it was little Yukio and his Koromon, so I closed the lid and tucked it away in my desk so he won't ruin it. In the Izumi family, the Kamiyas are part of the family. That makes Tai Dad's older brother and Yukio my little brother, sort of. Which means whenever he comes over, I'm forced to babysit him. Plus, he even acts as annoying as a little brother. Ugh…

"Hi, Hitomi!" He shouted with that same annoying volume.

"Hi, Yukio." I said as friendly as I could.

"You wanna play?" He asked squeezing his Koromon.

"Okay." I smiled. "What do you want to play?"

"You wanna have a Digi-battle?"

I rolled my eyes. "I have a better idea."

"Better than Digi-battles?"

"Yes." I sat on my bed and motioned for him to do the same. "I say that we should sit here and watch TV."

"But there's nothing on. I wanna play Digi-battle!" He began to yell.

"And I said that I don't want to."

"Why not?" He stomped his foot.

"Because Digi-battles aren't my thing." I sighed and rolled my eyes again as he began to whimper and mumble things I didn't understand. "How about we play a different game?"

"Okay!" He instantly cheered up. "What game should we play?"

"I don't know." I got off of the bed. "What game do _you_ want to play?"

He shrugged. "You wanna play Hide and Seek?"

I smiled. Hide and Seek was always my favorite game, but I didn't really have anyone to play it with. "Yeah, I'll count and you hide. We'll play in the back yard."

"Yay!" He cheered. "Come on, Koromon!"

For a little kid, he can _move_! Like a lightning bolt, he dashed out the back door. I couldn't help but to have a huge smile planted on my face at his excitement. He was annoying at times, but he could be really cute. I grabbed Motimon and was about to follow him, but I stepped on something half way to the door: a broken picture frame with our last family photo. I gasped when I realized that most of the broken glass was covering Mom's face. That's when things started making sense. That door slam I heard wasn't in my dream; it was Mom. I didn't even see her this morning. Dad said that she will come back but will she? Is that why Tai is talking to Dad? Is this what they're talking about?

"Hitomi, come on!" Yukio shouted.

"I know you're hurt, Hitomi." Motimon said. "But Dad said that Mom will come back. She just needs to take a break and blow off some steam. She'll be back as good as new." I smiled at my Digimon. It seems as though he knew what I was thinking. "And if anything happens, remember, I'm here for you."

"Thank you, Motimon." I picked him up and gave him a hug.

"Hitomi! Are you going to play with me or not?" Yukio yelled.

"I'm coming!" I shouted back with a smile. It would make it easier for all of us if I didn't cry in front of him.

_Run! Run! Run!_

About an hour later, I was on the brick wall again. "…seven…eight…nine…ten! Ready or not, here I come!" I shouted, scanning the back yard for little Yukio. But all I saw was his arm lying limp by the side of the house. It scared me in the sense that it looked as if something killed him. "Yukio?" I called as I ran over to him. When I turned to the side of the house, I saw that he wasn't dead. His arm was outstretched as his other arm was curled up by his stomach which was moving up and down in a slow motion. He was sleeping.

"Is he okay?" Motimon asked, coming out of his hiding spot which was under the patio chair.

"Yes, he just fell asleep." I whispered back. "Go get Koromon."

"I think he's asleep too." Motimon said, pointing to under the slide Dad built when I was a baby. There, Koromon was sitting with his eyes closed.

"Okay, let me get Yukio and you can get Koromon."

"But Koromon's too big." Motimon complained.

"Fine. I'll get him later." I positioned myself to pick up Yukio. He was only five so, with our body ratio, I should be able to pick him up. The only problem was that he was pretty big. As soon as I picked him up, I wobbled a bit before taking small steps to the house. Meanwhile, he was lying comfortably in my arms as he breathed loudly.

After bringing him and Koromon inside and tucking them into my bed, Motimon and I were on my laptop. "What do you think the grownups are talking about?" Motimon whispered.

"I don't know." I whispered back, continuing my typing. "I don't think I want to know."

"But what if it's important?"

"If it's important, then Dad will tell me himself."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I believe in Dad. He tells me everything I need to know and nothing I don't." I stopped typing. "But it is tempting." I shook my head as if I could shake off the idea. "No, eavesdropping is still wrong."

"But if you don't hear it from them, they'll try to sugar-coat it because you're a kid."

"You're right." I continued typing. "I still can't do that."

"Okay." He sat tight for a few seconds. "Are you sure?"

I didn't answer at first. Instead, I looked out the window waiting for the answer to come to me. It just started to get dark. "Well… I don't know."

"Okay, you don't have to. We can just babysit the little squirt and his Digimon."

"You're right. Maybe we should…" Before I could do anything, we heard Tai call out.

"Yukio!" He shouted. "It's time to go!"

Yukio stirred a bit under the covers but eventually woke up with tears in his eyes. "What's wrong, Yukio?" I asked him.

"I don't wanna go home! I'm sleepy!" He pouted.

"Don't worry. You can go to sleep in the car." I said. However, he still cried as he picked up Koromon who didn't move a muscle.

"What's the matter, son?" Tai asked him as soon as Yukio and I exited my room.

"I…I…" He stammered. "I…was…sleeping."

"You were?" The boy only choked on his tears and nodded. "Well, it is almost eight o'clock." Tai held onto his hand and made their way to the front door. "Bye, Izzy. Bye, Hitomi."

"B…Bye…Izzy." Yukio sobbed. "Bye…H…Hito…Hitomi."

"Bye." Dad and I waved as they left. As soon as Dad closed and locked the door, the doorbell rang.

"Who's that?" I asked Dad.

"I don't know." He opened the door to no one other than Mom. She was standing there in her work clothes, looking like she slept in them with makeup and all. It was all smudged on her face and her hair was very unkempt.

"Hi, Mom" I greeted.

"Hello, Hitomi!" She knelt down, kissed me on the forehead, and gave me a huge hug. It was so unexpected! I guess Motimon was right. She did come around. "I want you to go to your room while your dad and I talk, okay? It's pretty important."

I smiled but I was seething with rage on the inside. Why am I always sent to my room? Why does everyone need to talk to Dad? Shouldn't I be involved with whatever is going on? "Okay, Mom."

"Good. And remember, your mother loves you no matter what."

"Yeah, right." I mumbled to myself as I walked out, holding Motimon. I knew for a fact that something was wrong when she didn't yell at me for having him in the house. I closed the door as soon as they saw me enter it.

"What's wrong with your Mom?" Motimon asked. "She's acting differently."

Motimon was only here for a few days and even _he_ knows something's wrong. First of all, she said "your dad" instead of "Dad" like she usually does. I decided enough was enough. I needed to keep them from fighting or something. I need to do something. I just can't sit here and do nothing.

I softly turned the doorknob and pulled the door open just a crack. I wanted to make sure that they would be fighting or some form of aggression was taking place before I interrupted. "So, Izzy, how was your day?" Mom asked. I could see her leaning on the counter.

"It was okay. How was yours?" Dad asked out of view. I just imagined that he was sitting on the couch. "Do anything exciting?"

"No."

"Where did you go last night?" Mom didn't take this question seriously, seeing as she was laughing. "What's so funny?"

"Are you always this curious?" She asked.

I opened the door a little bit more to see Dad actually on the couch. His expression was full of frustration. That was probably the wrong question to ask him in his irate stage. "Just answer my first question. Where did you go last night? Were you with someone else?"

"What difference does it make to you? I thought you didn't care what happened to me."

"That's where you're wrong. I'm not a heartless person."

"Neither am I!" She yelled. "Don't treat me like I'm the bad guy! I'm the _victim_!"

"Victim?" Dad asked. "Victim of what? Do your feet hurt for partying too much?" My heart skipped a beat. What did he mean? Why was he speaking this way? He never said things like this before.

"No. I'm stressed and you're not helping me! You're kicking me out of my own house and you took my daughter away from me!"

"Listen to yourself! That doesn't make sense at all! You lied to me and you ran away!"

She sighed. "Obviously, this isn't working." Mom moved a hand through her hair. "You're right. I did run away. I can't live a lie anymore. I've met someone else."

Dad didn't say anything. My vision began to blur with the tears forming as I saw him sitting there with his eyes closed and eyebrows risen. He usually looked that way if he was truly angry at something or was thinking really hard. The longer he sat there in silence, the more I wanted to cry. "If you say so." He finally said. "There's nothing I could do about that."

"Yes, there is." She sat down next to him. "But it's only one thing." I braced myself for the words I feared for a while. "We have no choice but to get a divorce." She looked at Dad for a response but he didn't give it to her. He was sitting in that same position. He was like a rock that just didn't move. I just begged him not to say…

"You're right."

I gasped. My eyes widened. My stomach dropped. My heart ached. My grip went limp and my hand fell to the side. I didn't want to hear any more. I just wanted to wake up from this nightmare. I just wanted for them to jump off of the couch and tell me that it was a joke. I stepped away slowly from the door. I didn't know what I was going to do. I felt torn on the inside. That's when I noticed my laptop sitting quietly on my bed. I just needed something to keep my mind off of what was going on. Anything.

_Type! Type! Type!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Type! Type! Type!_

"You're right." I said again. "If you want to run away, go away. I don't want to worry about where you are all of the time and live in a marriage supported by lies." I got off of the couch and headed towards the master bedroom.

"So you're kicking me out?" She asked.

"Yes." I can't believe I'm saying this. "I am." I sat on the bed, waiting for her to start packing but she just stood there.

"Can't we do this in the morning?"

"Don't you have work?"

"Well, yes, but…" She sighed and sat next to me. "I just want to spend one last night with you."

I shook my head. "Kayo…" I looked up at her navy blue eyes. For a second, I had a flashback of when we first met. "I can't…"

"Fine." She stormed into the closet and grabbed her suitcase. "I'm leaving to someone who I know will take care of me!" She yelled loud enough for me to feel it. "I hope your happy, Koushiro Izumi! You'll never see me in this house again!" She pulled out as many of her clothes as she could from the closet and stuffed it into the suitcase.

"Fine." I said back. I didn't feel like yelling. At this point, I just wanted to go to bed. I paid for this whole house anyway. She won't miss it. "Just don't wake Hitomi on your way out."

"Don't tell me what to do! You're not my husband anymore!" She took her wedding ring off and threw it at me. I was lucky enough to catch it, especially with how fast she threw it. After zipping up her suitcase, she took mine and did the same thing. Of course I was mad, but I could always get another one. The sooner she's out the better.

"You know," I started. Kayo didn't even turn around. Instead, she continued to fill up my suitcase and her purses with jewelry and makeup. "Hitomi isn't going to be happy with what you did. Once I tell her, she's going to be furious."

"But she'll have you to comfort her."

"Do you feel at least a little guilty with what you did?"

"Of course I do!" She yelled. "I'm not proud of what I did. At this age, I should know better." Tears began to fall and stain her cheeks. "But I met someone else. I'm sorry things didn't work out." She grabbed both of the suitcases and headed out. I followed her out of the master bedroom and to the front door. It was completely dark now. "Goodbye, Koushiro Izumi." As soon as she turned around, she started sobbing loudly. She walked with a quick pace with her suitcases in hand to her car. I watched as Kayo loaded them into the trunk of her SUV. Then, she drove off.

It's done…for now.

I should feel relieved. No more lies. No more secrets. It was just Hitomi, Motimon, and me. That's all it's ever been.

But I wasn't.

I was torn. I felt as if someone put my insides into a washing machine and mixed them all together. So I did what I did the day I found out that I was adopted. I went into the computer room and closed the door gently so that I wouldn't wake up my daughter if she was asleep. The room was cold with the only warmth coming from the computer. I flipped the light switch and sat down on the soft, old office chair. Then, I turned on the computer and did what I did best: research.

* * *

So that's chapter 4! Please give me a review and tell me how I did with the original characters. Your feedback means a lot! Plus, I wanted to mention that I'm going to take a break from Izzy's/Hitomi's POV for a while so I can tell you Mimi's story. Anyway, please please PLEASE review! Anyone can!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

A/N: Okay, don't get confused. I'm about to switch to another story. Mimi's story starts now. Tell me what you think about what happens/happened/will happen!

* * *

Chapter 5

Norio was my rock. He was always on my side. Was… We used to be in love. I thought we would be together forever. He provided everything the family needed like shelter and money. Now, my son and I are left without it. We've been from place to place. First, we were in few motels. Then, I saved enough money to rent a house for a year. At that point, I hoped that I could find another place.

Sometimes, I wished that I never met Norio. But how could I resist that charm he had when we first met? I remember it like it was yesterday.

I was checking up on how Davis's noodle cart was coming. It was a sunny summer morning and everything was going well. I woke up knowing it was going to be a good day! "Hi, Davis!" I greeted as I happened to walk by the cart.

"Hi, Mimi! You like my cart?"

"Yeah, how's business?"

"Booming as usual!" He answered as a few customers pushed by me, yelling for more noodles. Even a few reporters came! He was very popular!

"Davis Motomiya, can you tell us the secret behind your popular noodles?" One guy asked.

"Sorry, I can't." He said. "I wish the secret recipe to remain a secret. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a secret recipe!"

"Davis, this is one successful stand you have here." One guy said from behind me.

His bold voice shook me at first but once I saw how cute he was, I wasn't afraid. He was a little taller than me… Okay, so he had another head on me. Plus, he had brown hair that was neatly cut and brown eyes. He was so handsome! "Hi, Norio!" Davis called as he was making transactions. "It's nice to see you again!"

"Nice to see you too!"

"Davis, who's your friend?" I asked him just when all of the customers slowly started to go away.

"Oh, Mimi, this is my friend, Norio. We used to be on the same soccer team." He said, wiping the counter with a wet towel. "Norio, this is my friend, Mimi. She's a DigiDestined like me."

I turned to Norio and nearly got lost in those eyes. "It's nice to meet you." I said, holding out a hand.

"It's nice to meet you to." He said while giving me the firmest handshake I've ever gotten. "Davis, I didn't know you knew such a beautiful girl." He whispered to Davis loud enough for me to hear.

"Oh, Norio, you must get all of the ladies with that charm!" I blushed.

"Not really." He answered. "I haven't had a steady girlfriend since high school."

Davis was only smiling this whole time. "Go ahead, Norio, make your move." He said. "Mimi's single."

Norio blushed. "Well, if you say so."

"Do it!" Davis pushed. "She's an awesome girl."

"I am." He nodded then turned his attention towards me. "Do you want to go out to dinner sometime?"

I nodded. "Of course!"

"Great." He smiled.

And from then on, we were a couple. But that was just it. We were going steady about a month later. Nothing special. It was just a question. "Will you go steady with me?" I answered. Done. We also had a couple of "Passionate flings" from time to time (if you know what I mean)! But what I didn't understand was why he didn't ask me to marry him. Three years from then, I sat at the table with mail scattered all over the place when I got an invitation from the mail for the Izumi wedding. Sure, I was just a little jealous, seeing as everyone in the first generation DigiDestined were married now. I was left out again. Even Joe had a beautiful wife!

When I opened that invitation, I was a little upset. I already moved into his house and shared everything with him. Now, he just left me waiting for him to pop the question. I want to make it official. "Norio, we got an invitation." I told him.

"An invitation to what?" He asked, just coming through the front door. He just came from another court case as an attorney at law…or something like that. He's been working on a big case all week.

"It's an invitation to Izzy's wedding." I told him. Then I said louder "Kayo's a lucky girl! I always wanted to get married. You know, I would sure like to be made an honest woman of myself."

"Yeah, that's nice…" He said, obviously distracted.

"Norio, are you even listening to me?" I stood up.

"Yes, I'm listening." He sat down on the couch and started fumbling with his tie. "Did you want to go?"

I sighed. "Of course I want to go. Izzy's my friend."

"When is it?" He took his tie off and tossed it onto the coffee table. Then, he got relaxed as he turned on the TV.

"It's next month on the fourteenth." I told him, sitting next to him and resting my head on his shoulder. Naturally, he wrapped his arm around me.

"I can't make it. I have another case then." My head shot up to give him a dark glare. "What?"

"Oh, can't you reschedule it?" I pleaded.

"That's the judge's doing." He said before I erupted with an exaggerated sigh. "Mimi, if I could change it, I would. There's nothing in the world I would rather do than spend time with my girlfriend." Norio kissed me on the nose.

"Okay." I sighed. "I guess I'll go to the wedding by myself."

"Don't worry, honey, I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Do you mean it?"

"Yes. As soon as the Judge makes his decision, I'll bolt out of the courthouse and into my car. I'll drive as fast as I could to the reception just to see you in your pretty dress."

"That's so nice." I smiled and gave him a kiss. "But you remember your promise."

"I will." He gave me another kiss to seal the deal.

"Good." I saw that the clock read six before I got up from my comfortable spot. "I'll go make dinner. What do you want?"

"You pick this time."

I sighed. "I don't know what I want." I looked through the fridge and saw a chicken. There's a lot I could do with a chicken. But at random, I felt nauseated looking at it. I decided to put my attention to something else to the best of my ability, but I still felt…off. I shut the fridge and turned my attention towards my boyfriend. "You know, why don't we just order pizza or something? I don't feel like cooking." I told him.

"What's the matter?" He turned his focus off of the TV and onto me.

"Well, I just…" Suddenly, my vision blurred. At that point, everything got darker. My hearing shut off. I collapsed. And I was out.

_Fainted! Fainted! Fainted!_

I woke up looking into Norio's eyes. He was looking at me with great concern. I always hated to see him worried. At first, he didn't really say anything. I seemed to be in the master bed with something wet on my forehead. Oh, and I was fine. Well, that is except for my stomach which ached a little. "What happened?" I asked him.

He only chuckled at my question. "You tell me!" Then he got serious. "We should probably get you to a doctor."

"You're right." I was slow to get up on my feet because I still felt uneasy. That's when I realized the wet thing on my head was melting ice as it fell off the bed and hit the floor. I bent down to pick it up but Norio insisted otherwise.

"You get in the car. I'll clean it up." He said, handing me the car keys from his pocket. Something tells me he already had them ready.

I sighed as I grabbed my purse off of the couch and headed to the car. I hated going to the hospital. It was always full of bad news. That is, except for this time.

The doctor came in with a clip board and a smiling face. "Congratulations! You're going to be parents!"

Of course, I was excited but at the same time, I was fearful for more than one reason. First of all, I didn't know how I was going to raise a baby while Norio's working all of the time. Plus, there was the matter of the fact that I wasn't supposed to have children until I was married. At this rate, that wasn't going to happen! And what would my friends think about me? Having children before you get married is just unheard of. Then again, so were abortions. I didn't know what to think. I didn't know how to feel until I saw the look on Norio's face.

"We're going to have a baby!" He shouted with happiness. I've never seen a smile so big on his face. "Can you believe that?"

"No, I can't!" I told him, matching his enthusiasm. I honestly couldn't believe that.

But the real question was: how am I going to tell everyone? I called my parents right after we got home and they were happy for me. As surprising as it was considering how they always told me to get married first, they were ecstatic! Then, I called Sora. She was happy for me. That was it. I didn't tell anyone else because I was scared of what they would say. They would say that I was impure. Because I was. I am impure.

"Are you coming to the wedding?" Sora asked. At the time, she was pregnant for eight months with her first child.

"Of course I am!" I promised. "Izzy's my best guy friend. I can't miss his wedding for the world!"

"That's great! I'll see you there!" She paused. "Are you going to tell everyone there?"

I sighed. "I can't tell everyone I'm pregnant at Izzy's wedding ceremony. That will take the attention off of them and onto me, and that's the last thing I need right now."

"Really? I think my water breaking will take the attention off of everything!" She laughed but stopped to catch her breath. "It's going to be a girl and Matt and I don't know what to name her."

"That's so exciting! I hope I have a girl." I smiled, thinking of my pushing a baby carriage with a beautiful bundle of joy inside. Someone I could call my own. Maybe having a baby won't be that bad. Sora seems to be taking it well. Maybe I'll find the courage to tell them…eventually, of course. "I'll see you at the ceremony."

"Alright, bye." She hung up and I did the same.

I was already a month along when the wedding came around. As it was planned, I went alone. Well, I was sort of alone. I got a ride from Matt and Sora. Was I embarrassed? Not really. I knew Tai for a fact was single. He had to be the only one. That is until I saw him kiss the girl next to him. She had brown hair that was weirdly cut like Tai's. Plus, she had a little muscle tone, so I'm guessing she was into sports. They're probably perfect for each other. Darn.

As soon as the ceremony ended, the reception began in this huge hotel ballroom with beautiful decorations and a nice band in the back. As soon as we got there, Matt was looking through the crowd like a search dog. "Where is he?" He kept asking. He held Sora's hand who was also holding my hand as we passed through people and made our way to Izzy. "There he is!" Matt pulled us out of the crowd and into a safe zone. "Congratulations, Izzy!"

"Yeah, I know you guys will be happy forever." Sora chimed in as she rubbed her baby belly.

"Thanks." Izzy smiled.

Before I could add something, Tai finally squeezed in through the crowd. "And what a beautiful wife she makes too!" He said.

"I'm so happy for you!" I told him.

"What are you going to do now that you're married?" Cody asked.

Before he could answer, Kayo came over and sat on his lap. "Now, that we're married," she answered, "we're going to buy a house to put all of these wedding gifts in."

"That's great!" He sat down. "I'm just going to put things out there. I have a girlfriend!"

"Cody, that's great!" Izzy told him. Him and Cody are very close. It was probably because they shared the Crest of Knowledge! "Is she here?"

"Unfortunately, she's not. Her name is Terri and she's visiting her father in Hong Kong." He said. "She'll be back tomorrow morning."

"Well, that's great anyway."

"Let's make a toast to the newlyweds!" T.K. cheered, raising a glass.

"To the newlyweds!" Everyone cheered.

And that was that. Unfortunately, I spent the rest of the party sitting with Sora as Matt was mingling. Norio didn't show up. Of course I was angry, but I couldn't do anything about that. That's just how it was for the next seven months. He worked late on several cases while I work as a waitress at the nearest restaurant.

I loved it there! I worked up a nice cardio work out, carrying trays and walking back and forth to the kitchen and back. Plus, I got really good tips! Whenever I gave everyone their menus, I would suggest food for them according to what they were in the mood for and what they liked. I was able to tell them what was in all of the food and how it was made and served in better detail than the menu itself. My boss even told me that I increased the customer ratio by… I forgot how much but it was really good!

Unfortunately, I had to take my maternity leave when the due date came closer. My boss was sad to see me go, but he said that he'll let me come back whenever my leave is over!

I remember when my water broke just seconds after I got home. Luckily, Norio was already home. "It's time to become parents!" I cheered through gritted teeth.

"Already?"

I nodded.

"Let's go!" He grabbed our jackets and the bags we packed and headed out the door. "This could be serious."

Moments later, our son was brought into our lives! The only problem was that Norio wasn't there. He had to leave and work… Some of the memory was hazy… I couldn't remember what happened after he left… Oh, right! I was pushing. The good part was that Sora and my mom were there with me. Of course, I was angry at Norio but he said that he fought to stay. His boss must be a real jerk!

"Congratulations! You have a new baby boy!" The doctor cheered.

But I didn't feel like celebrating. A tear rolled down my face at the fact that Norio won't be here to cut the umbilical cord. Since he couldn't do it, Dad had to cut the cord. I guess that works as good.

"What are you going to name him?" Sora asked with her hand still holding mine.

"I'm going to name him Makoto." I told her. "I had the name picked out for over a month. I want him to grow up to be very sincere."

"Like you?" She smiled.

I nodded. "He's my precious, sincere Makoto. He'll always be by my side."

That was the truth until the doctors took him away. It turns out that there were some complications with the pregnancy. Some things were just out of place so they gave him plenty of surgery. I didn't know what was wrong with him because of the big doctor words. To be blunt, he was premature and he didn't develop properly.

When Norio found out about all of Makoto's special treatment from Matt, he came by as soon as he could to check on him. "How is he?" He would always say when he came in.

I would always point to the room he was in because of my postpartum depression. It was horrible. I remember that I couldn't get out of bed for anything in the world. I didn't feel like doing anything for myself. But that's what Norio's here for. He's my rock.

"How are you, honey?" He would ask me with a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm fine." I would ask in a blunt manner. I was so dull at the time it was crazy! "How's the baby?"

"Just fine." He answered. "He's asleep now."

"Okay." I said, wanting him to go away, but he didn't.

"I really miss you at home." He said.

"Really?" I asked with actual curiosity.

"Yeah, it's been quiet without you." He told me, giving me a kiss on the cheek. "When are you getting out?"

I shrugged, still lifeless. "I don't know." I told him. "I hope it's soon."

"Me too."

Then without warning, I blurted out "How are we going to take care of a baby when we're both working all of the time?"

"Maybe I could take on fewer cases…" He trailed off as I interrupted him.

"You can do that?" I yelled. "Then why am I doing all of these things without you?"

"Honey, you know I'm always by your side."

"No, you're not. Didn't you see the birth of your son? Of course you didn't! You were too busy working!"

"Mimi, I'm doing this so that we could live off of the money."

"You're right. Being a lawyer is soooo important." I sighed. "Okay, I'm sorry. That was the hormones talking."

"No, you're right." He sat on my bedside. "I've been putting my job in front of you and that was wrong of me. From now on, I'll consider the family first."

I smiled. Maybe Norio will actually change his ways instead of saying so. "That's all I ever ask for." I kissed him. "Do you promise?"

"I promise." He kissed me back.

But he didn't keep his promise. For the first year of Makoto's life, he's been in and out of the hospital having more procedures done on him. Again, Norio never really visited him. As I saw him in a little incubator with many cords and wires poking in and out of him, I was alone to feel the pain. Once I had enough, I decided to leave. My head hung low and my arms were crossed. I was depressed. Then, I heard a familiar voice.

"Hi Mimi!" I snapped my head upward and saw that it was Izzy. Honestly, I was shocked to see him. I hoped nothing happened.

"Izzy, what are you doing here?" I asked, meeting with him as well as Tai and Kari.

"My wife's in labor. What are you doing here?"

"I'm just visiting my son." I said this with a fake smile. I didn't want Izzy to worry on his child's birthday. "The doctor said I should be able to take him home next week. I just hope he's okay."

"You had your baby?" Tai asked. "Where was I?"

"I tried calling you, but you didn't answer." I smacked him on the shoulder playfully. "His name is Makoto and he's almost one year old. He was born prematurely and didn't develop properly so they have to do some…stuff."

"Mr. and Mrs. Izumi," the doctor called, "are you ready to witness a miracle?"

"Ready!" Mrs. Izumi answered.

Once they were inside, I cancelled the fake smile and sunk onto a nearby chair. "Are you okay?" Kari asked.

"I'm fine. It's just that by the time I take Makoto home, he's not going to know who his daddy is." I sighed. "Norio hasn't seen the baby since he was born. He's always too busy at work."

"What?" Tai asked in disbelief. "That's not cool at all." He sat down next to me.

"It really isn't." Kari was about to say something else but something stopped her. She wrapped her stomach with one arm and held her mouth closed with the other hand. "I'm sorry… I'll be right back." Then she walked off in a fast pace toward the bathroom.

"I think she's next in line to see the stork." Tai smiled. "Anyway, did you tell Norio that he's been working too much?"

"I did." I answered. "Over a thousand times."

He sighed. Then I did the same.

"You know, the doctor said that he should be well by next week. That'll be his birthday." I told him.

"Norio can't miss that!"

"There are a lot of things he can't miss. The birth of our child not being one of them apparently."

"He missed that?" Tai nearly yelled.

"Yes." A tear went down my cheek as that horrible lump in my throat started to form. "Tai, I don't know what to do." Then, I started to cry.

"Mimi, if this is how he's starting off, then why keep going? I say you should just cut it off now."

"Because I'm too nice…" I sighed, wiping my tears. "I keep giving him all of these chances." I could tell by that point that Tai was just boiling. He hated to see his friends cry. "You know, he promised that he'll try to work less."

"Yeah?" He asked in disbelief. "How is that working?"

"Not so good now, but he's going to have to adjust. I believe in my boyfriend."

Tai's eyes widened. Did I say something wrong? "You two aren't married?"

I sighed. "He hasn't asked me yet." Then, I instantly shook off the misery. "But I still have my son. Makoto and I will always have each other." Unlike Norio, I was going to keep that promise.

* * *

So that's chapter 5! Tell me what you think! Your reviews mean a lot! A LOT! :P


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: Sorry I'm so late! I had a paper due last night and I completely forgot about uploading the story. Don't worry though. I'll still upload the rest of my chapters on schedule.

* * *

Chapter 6

"Happy birthday, Makoto!" I shouted on that beautiful morning. He just turned ten and I got him the best present a ten-year-old boy could get: a Digimon. And not just any Digimon either, but I got him his very own Tanemon! I hid the Digimon behind my back as I slowly crept into my son's messy room. "Makoto, why isn't your room cleaned?"

"Mom…" he complained, just waking up. "I'll clean it later. Can I go back to bed?"

"You can, but did you forget that it's your birthday? Don't you want your present from me?"

He shot his head up "Yeah!"

"Okay, look under your pillow."

He shot me a confused glance before doing what I said. When he saw what it was, he nearly screamed! "It's a Digivice! Wow!"

"That's not the only thing!" I took Tanemon from behind my back and showed her his new owner.

"Wow! It's Tanemon!" He nearly jumped out of bed. "Thanks Mom! This is the best gift ever! Do you think I should show Dad?"

I nodded. "Go ahead."

Norio and I have been in an on/off relationship for the last couple of years. I know it's pathetic but I can't help myself. I'm just naturally bound to him! But there are times when I just can't stand him! Whenever the relationship is off, I would take Makoto with me to my parents' house. I just hope that Makoto doesn't mind it. He hates moving in and out. But I know that he hates how Norio keeps coming in and out of his life. My Makoto knows I'm not at fault.

Now, Norio was about to get ready for work when Makoto came in. "What's that?" Norio asked him.

"Dad, this is Tanemon!" Makoto introduced with a lot of excitement. "She's my new Digimon."

Norio looked at the Digimon and picked up his tie. "That's nice." He said, tying it around his neck. "You'll get your present from me after work, okay, son?"

"Present from you?" Makoto looked at me then back at his dad. "Don't you mean that Mom and you got the same present for me? I mean, didn't you both get this for me?"

My poor son looked so confused. I felt that I had to clarify. "Makoto, Dad didn't want to get you a Digimon for your birthday. He wanted to get you something else, but I said that you should have the pleasure of owning a Digimon so I got you one."

Norio shook his head and rolled his eyes. I could see it from the mirror.

"Don't you want two presents?" I asked my son.

He sighed. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I don't." He put Tanemon down. "Only kids with divorced parents get two of everything. I don't know what to do with two of everything." He started walking off.

"Well, I have to go to work." Norio picked up his briefcase.

"No, you wait here." I grabbed his wrist. "Makoto, you get ready for school. Take Tanemon with you. I have to talk to your father."

"Okay, Mom." He picked up Tanemon and slowly closed the door behind him.

I waited a few seconds for him to be far away from the door before I started "talking" to Norio. "What was that all about? Don't you want Makoto to be happy? It's his birthday."

"Yes, I know." He put down his briefcase. "That's why I'm giving him his present from me after I come home from work. What's the problem?"

"You worried him."

"No I didn't. He's a kid. He'll be fine."

"Kids worry too."

"Well, he doesn't have to. He has you." He gave me a kiss on the cheek. "You're being a great mom."

"You think so?" I blushed.

"I know so." He picked up his suitcase. "I'm going to be late for work. I'll be here to go out for the birthday dinner. I'll give him his present there."

"Okay. Don't break your promise. You've already missed the last five birthdays."

"I'll definitely make it!"

"Six o'clock?"

"Six o'clock." He reassured as he headed out the door.

"Six o'clock." I reminded him as he was walking to the car.

"Six o'clock." He repeated to tell me that he understood.

"Six o'clock." I said again once he was in the car.

"Six o'clock." He said before driving off.

I smiled as I saw him go off. At that point, I knew he was going to keep his word. Why wouldn't he? His son turns the big one-zero! "Makoto, are you ready to go?"

"Not yet, Mom!" He shouted before coming into the living room with me. "I don't know what to do with Tanemon."

"Do what I use to do. Carry her around and pretend she's a doll."

"Yay!" Tanemon cheered. "I get to go to school with Makoto!"

"But Mom, I just turned ten. I can't hang around with a stuffed animal. The guys will think I'm a wimp."

"No they won't. You remember Matt was a year older than you and he carried around his Digimon like it was a stuffed toy. I'm sure you can do the same. Now, let's hurry or you'll be late for school and I'll be late for work."

He looked at the Digimon and back at me. "Okay, Mom."

_Ride! Ride! Ride!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Ride! Ride! Ride!_

"Have a nice day at school, Makoto!" Mom shouted. "And remember to make sure Tanemon doesn't make a sound or the teachers will take him up!"

"Okay Mom." I waved as she drove off. Today, school's going to be a madhouse. Everyone's going to make fun of me for carrying around a "doll." Can it get any worse than this?

"Hi, Makoto." Three pretty cheerleaders greeted. They were very pretty and they had their Digimon in their arms. They were a Salamon, a DemiVeemon, and a Yokomon.

"I see you finally got a Digimon." The blonde cheerleader with the DemiVeemon said. "That's really cool."

"I know." I said with a tough guy attitude. "My mom got it for me for my birthday. She was one of the original DigiDestined, you know."

"She was?" The brunette with the Salamon asked. "Lucky. My dad just happened to find me mine."

"So is it your birthday?" The redhead with the Yokomon asked. "Can we eat lunch with you?"

"Brittany!" The blonde shouted. "You're not supposed to ask him!"

"Sorry…" She pouted.

"It's fine." I told them. I have a reputation for being popular as you can see. "Join me at the cool table."

"Okay!" All three of them exclaimed.

As I walked down the hall, everyone greeted me and wished me a happy birthday. It was just the price you pay with being one of the most popular guys in the school! Even the teachers couldn't resist my charm! Take my math teacher Mrs. Bennington for example. As I was entering her class, she noticed that I was holding onto Tanemon."Makoto, is that a Digimon."

"No." I answered in my sweetest voice. "It's a present for my mom."

"Isn't that nice?" She beamed as I took my seat. "If only _my_ son got me things for no reason."

"It's not for no reason, Mrs. Bennington. My mom has cooked and cleaned and took care of me for ten years. She deserves something nice. I've spent a long time trying to get her the right present that I accidentally forgot to finish my homework. Can I please have another day to finish it?"

"Okay." She said after a pause of thought. "One more day and that's it. I can't give you special treatment."

Little did she know that she already did.

Then she came in mere minutes later. It was Hitomi Izumi, the weird girl. She's always alone doing…computer nerd stuff. Plus she draws random things. For some odd reason, she likes to sit next to me in math and talk to me. "Happy birthday, Makoto."

"Thank you." I turned my attention to my math book to end the conversation. But it didn't work.

"Summer vacation starts soon. What are you going to do while you're out of school?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Move, I guess."

"Move?"

Did I just say that? I never told anyone how often I moved in and out of my own house. Mom always told me that we were spending the night at my grandparents' house whenever we went over. But I knew better when our little "slumber parties" lasted as long as four months. Then again, I always knew we would go back home. But if I went around telling everyone we move all of the time, they might think I'm just as weird as…Hitomi.

"I didn't say that." I immediately tried to take it back. "I mean, that's not what I meant."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." I kind of shifted in my seat so that I could face the opposite direction, but she kept on talking to me.

"What did you mean?"

"I mean that… I mean…vacation." Good lie! "Our family will probably go on vacation."

"Oh, that's nice." She smiled. "We're going to Hawaii. How about you?"

I rolled my eyes. "I don't know…New York."

"That's nice."

And it went that way every day. She would say something and I would say something back and try to end the conversation at the same time. However, that didn't happen while I was anywhere else but math class. While I was at lunch, a bunch of my friends would sit with me she would sit alone in the corner, minding her own business. It was weird.

"How come you always talk to her?" My friend, Yuu, asked me at lunch that same day. He pushed up his glasses and took a sip of his milk.

"It's because she always talks to me." I answered as I sat Tanemon on the table. I didn't think it would be a problem if I fed her a few French fries.

"She's so weird. She's always in the computer room." My other friend, Masa, said as he combed his messy dark purple hair with his fingers.

"Hey, leave her alone." I told him. "She didn't do anything to you."

"Come on." Yuu said. "You know she's weird."

"Yes I do, but there's no point in advertising it all of the time." I sighed before taking a bite of what was supposed to be a hamburger but was sadly a cheap cafeteria imitation.

"So what are you going to do for your birthday?" Masa asked, wiping his nose with a napkin. Ever since we were kids, he always suffered from allergies. "It sucks that it's on a school night."

"We're going out to dinner." I told them. "It's just the family."

"At least you're not hanging out with…" Yuu started.

He glanced at Masa before they said at the same time in a mocking tone "…Hitomi Izumi!" and erupted into laughter.

"Guys, cut it out!"

And that's how lunch was every day. I don't understand why they have so much fun making fun of a little girl who was younger than us. Maybe that's why they call it "making fun."

_School! School! School!_

At six o' clock like Mom wanted, we were ready to go out to dinner. The only problem was that we weren't all here. I sighed as I slumped onto the couch with Tanemon in my arms. Meanwhile, Mom was on the phone talking to Dad. "You said you would be here by six o'clock. You promised!" There was a pause. I could hear Dad mumbling on the other line.

"What's going on?" Tanemon asked.

"The same thing for the past five years. Dad's going to miss the birthday dinner and he's trying to explain to Mom what's going on. Mom gets mad and yells at Dad."

"When does it stop?"

I sighed. "It stops when Mom decides to leave and takes me…or us…with her to the grandparents. Then, we stay there for about four months and come back here. Then we're good until Christmas or my next birthday."

"That sounds awful." Tanemon whispered to me. "You must move around a lot."

"I do. It drives me crazy."

"Norio, when are you getting here?" Mom asked. Again, Dad only mumbled. "Really? That long?"

I sighed. "Looks like Dad isn't coming." I got off of the couch before I added "again."

"Don't be sad, Makoto." Tanemon told me. "I'm sure Dad has a good reason."

"No, Tanemon, it's always the same. He says that he's sorry that he couldn't make it. He has a very important case that he's working on and he just has to stay late."

Once Mom hung up the phone, she sat down on the couch next to where I was. "Dad's not going to be able to make it again." She sighed. "But we could still go."

"Forget it." I told her a little harsher than I wanted to. "I don't want to go. Thanks for everything though."

_Stomp! Stomp! Slam!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Stomp! Stomp! Slam!_

Watching my son stomp off like that really made me feel guilty. All he wanted was for his father to join him on his birthday. Was that too much to ask? Another birthday ruined. Just great.

Or maybe it's not ruined.

I guess I'll have to make something. "Makoto, what do you want to eat for dinner?"

There was a long pause. At first, I thought he was so upset that he wasn't speaking. Then, I thought he might just be thinking. Then he answered. "I'm not hungry."

Stupid Norio. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay." I sighed.

I decided to go ahead and crawl into bed. There wasn't anything left for me to do except wait for Norio to come home. That was the plan until I heard a familiar voice…

"What's wrong, Mimi?" I sprung up and saw my old friend, Palmon, standing at the door.

"Palmon, it's so good to see you!" I jumped out of bed and gave her a great big hug. Just like always, she smelt of fresh cut grass and flowers. "You won't believe what happened."

"Come on." She grabbed my hand and guided me towards the living room. "Now tell me what happened."

"My boyfriend, Norio, is working late on Makoto's birthday. It's his tenth birthday and he's missing it."

"Wow! I missed a lot when I was gone!" She joked. "Anyway, I'm sure Norio's working late for a good reason." As Palmon spoke, she walked around the house to get a better feel of things. I'm guessing the décor is something they don't have in the Digital World. "But you're right. Working late on his son's tenth birthday is unheard of." She took her attention off of the decoration in the kitchen and looked at me. "Makoto _is_ his son right."

"Yes. And mine." I told her.

"Yours too? Congratulations! You had a baby…ten years ago!" I laughed at my Digimon's craziness. "Do you know what I do whenever I'm upset?"

"Cry?"

"Well, that and I do something I like to do. And sometimes, I do something I've never done before."

"But what can I do? My son and my job is all I have." I crossed my legs and arms and thought. What can I do? What is there for me? That's when it hit me. I flashed back to the time when there were slow nights at the restaurant. I would chit chat with the chefs. I remember that one of them showed me a recipe for Chicken Chow Mein! "I can cook something."

Palmon's eyes widened. "You? Cook?"

"Of course!" I got up from the couch and skipped into the kitchen. "I work in a restaurant. I should know at least one thing in the kitchen." I went into the fridge and took out some chicken, egg noodles, sunflower oil, an onion, two garlic cloves, a ginger root, a cup of bean sprouts, a cup of snow peas, soy sauce, and sweet chili sauce. Yes, we have a lot of stuff. Norio usually does the cooking…whenever he got the chance.

"Wow! Look at all of the ingredients!" Palmon exclaimed. "This must be a complicated recipe!"

"No, it's actually pretty simple." I told her bringing out a few bowls. "Let me show you." Palmon nodded as she sat on a stool we had set up by the bar counter. "First, we cook the noodles in a large pan until boiling." I grabbed the pan and put it over the stove. Palmon helped by pouring water in it.

"That looks good." She said when she put enough water in.

"Yes, it does! Meanwhile we heat the oil in a wok and stir-fry the onion over a high heat for 3 minutes or until it begins to brown. And while we wait, let me tell you that the Teenage Wolves split up years ago not because of band disputes, but because they just weren't teenagers anymore!"

"I didn't know that!" Palmon said. "You learn something new every day!"

I looked at the pans to see how much time I had. "Plus, the mall a few streets down is having a huge mega-savers sale on almost anything you can imagine! We should check that out this weekend and bring some umbrellas because there will be a slight chance of rain."

"That's great to know. The last thing I need is to get wet!"

When I checked on the pots, I saw that it was time for the next step. "Okay, so now we add the garlic, ginger, bean sprouts, and snow peas and stir-fry for one minute." After that was done, I focused on Palmon. "So what's new in the Digital World?"

"Well, if you want to hear some gossip, Veemon was seen with Gatomon by the lake. It seemed to be a bit more than just a picnic!" She told me.

"So they're dating?"

"That has not been confirmed." She winked, telling me that she thought otherwise.

"Oh, I see." I nodded. "Okay, now we drain the noodles well and add to the wok with the chicken and soy sauce. We do this for 2 minutes until it's piping hot."

"While we wait, let me tell you something else." Palmon said. "I saw Tentomon making friends with a Motimon. If I didn't know better, I'd say that Motimon is going to have a new owner. That owner will get a new Digimon for her birthday!"

"Her? Who is it?"

"Hitomi Izumi. You know, Izzy's daughter. She's going to get a Motimon for her eleventh birthday."

"That's for another two years. Why is he making friends now?"

"So he can get close to him. When Izzy picks him up, he wants to make sure that he's friendly."

"Aren't all Digimon friendly?" Palmon gave me an are-you-kidding-me look. That's when I remembered the bad Digimon we came across. "Okay, you don't have to answer that."

"Okay, what do we do now?"

"The last thing we need to do is to stir in the sweet chili sauce and serve." I put the last remaining things together and it turned out beautifully! For the first time, it was really something! "And viola! Chicken Chow Mein! Come on, taste it." I took a fork and force-fed my Digimon.

"Wow, Mimi! This is really good!"

I smiled and presented the dish as if I were on TV. "And there you have it!" Suddenly, I heard clapping from behind me. It was a close by, a little low to the ground, slowed tempo clapping. I turned around so fast with a jump that I was surprised that I didn't drop the dish! It was Makoto with Tanemon on his head.

"That's nice, Mom." He said. "It's like you were on TV just now."

"You think so?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, I'll say."

"Thank you, sweetie." I said as I fixed him a plate.

"You should ask Mr. Ishida to have your own cooking show. You and Palmon would be a hit." He started shoveling down the food. "And this is very good."

"Thank you."

Once he and Tanemon were finished eating, he gave me the dirty plate and Tanemon jumped back onto his head. "Well, we're going to get ready for bed. Goodnight, Mom. Goodnight, Palmon."

"Goodnight." We both said at the same time.

"Well, I'm going to go back into the Digital World." Palmon said as she stretched her limbs. "Bye Mimi."

"Bye Palmon." I watched as my Digimon jumped back into the computer. Once she was gone, I plopped onto the couch, watching TV for the next few hours. That's when he came in.

Norio opened the door at midnight that night with his briefcase in his hand. His hair was all shaggy and messy and his tie was hung all crooked. "Hi, Mimi." He greeted as he stumbled inside.

"What happened to you?" I asked.

"I've been working on the toughest case." He answered.

"Oh really?"

"Yes, it's insane, but I don't want to bore you with the details. I'm just going to bed."

"Norio, it's midnight. You missed your son's birthday for the sixth year in a row!"

"I know. And I'll make it up to him."

"How?"

"Well, I have to work tomorrow…"

"You always have to work!" I hissed so that I wouldn't wake Makoto up.

"Hey, I have to make money."

"I understand that but you promised that you would take on fewer cases when Makoto was born. Do you remember?"

"Yes I remember."

"But you never keep your promises." He rubbed the back of his neck, unable to come up with a good response. That's when I spotted a familiar stain on the collar of his shirt. Why was it so familiar? Where have I seen it before? What was it? "Lipstick?" I asked him. "Is that lipstick on your shirt?"

"Well…"

I know I jumped to conclusions, but I believed that he was cheating. No, I _knew_ he was. Why else wouldn't he be home? What lawyer works until midnight? For that, I grabbed his briefcase and opened it. "Who's Jen?" I asked as I took out a napkin that had Jen's name on it along with a phone number. I also saw one that had a name and number for Kate and…Kayo? "Kayo? Izzy's wife?"

"Yes, but it's not like that."

"It's just Jen?"

He nodded. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean for you to find out."

"Why?" I asked as a tear fell. "How? What possessed you to do this?" Then with the anger boiling inside me, I took his briefcase and smacked him across the face with it. "You pig! You jerk!" I sobbed. "Why would you do this to me? We've been together for twelve years!" He didn't say anything, so I kept yelling. "No wonder you were always late. Well, guess what. Makoto and I are leaving first thing tomorrow morning."

"Fine. Do what you want. I know you'll come back in four months."

"No." I told him with a tear trickling down my cheek. "I'm done falling under your spell. I'm not coming back and neither is he."

"You said that the last time." He grabbed my wrist and tried to get me to stay. At this point, I felt threatened. "Now, let's just…"

"No! I mean it!" I shook my hand loose. "I'm leaving."

Norio's eyes widened. He didn't expect me to actually stand up for myself. He didn't expect to see me be the woman that I am. Little did he know that there was someone deep inside of me that was stronger. I call the shots this time! I've forgiven him too many times. I know now that enough is enough.

"I'm leaving for good." I told him again.

"No, you're not. You're staying with me!"

"No, I won't! I'm leaving with Makoto tomorrow morning!"

"Where will you go?"

"What do you care? I'm not your girlfriend anymore." Before I left the house, I wanted to make myself clear. "I'll be back tomorrow morning to pick up my son, his Digimon, and our stuff. Goodbye, Norio." And with that, I slammed the door behind me.

* * *

So that's chapter 6! Sorry again that I uploaded late. I'm trying to keep a schedule. Anyway, give me a review please!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: The last chapter has been the longest I've ever written! Who's ready for a little Koumi?

* * *

Chapter 7

"Makoto…" Mom called that next morning. "Makoto, wake up."

My eyes opened with my sight on Tanemon. She was sleeping peacefully next to me. It was too bad I had to wake her up, but I had school today. The good part was that it was a Friday and the last day of school. That's nice. But getting up wasn't nice. I had a bad head ache and a sore throat. Just great. The last thing I needed was a cold.

Especially on a day like today.

Mom nearly busted the door down, looking tired but at the same time very alert. "Makoto, get up."

"I'm up." I told her, barely moving a muscle.

"I need you to pack your things." She told me, picking up some of my things and putting them in suitcases.

"But I have to get ready for school."

"You're not going to school. You're going to pack up and do what I say, okay?"

"We're packing?" Tanemon asked. "Are we moving to the grandparents' house?"

"Yes, we are." Mom answered. "So get up and get packing, please."

"But Mom…" I couldn't finish my sentence because I heard something I only heard once in a nightmare: Mom crying. She was facing away from me and her shoulders were shaking. "Are you okay, Mom?"

"Your father hurt me pretty badly, but I'll be fine." She wiped her tears and sat down next to me. "I know you love your father but some things happen… Anyway, I just want to let you know that you're not coming back."

I gasped. The air nearly choked me as my stomach flopped. What happened between my parents? What's going to happen to us? "Never?" I asked in disbelief. Mom only shook her head. Dad must've done something horrible. I knew that it wasn't my place to intervene. I guess I'll have to go along with whatever Mom has planned. I slowly got out of bed. "Okay. I'll pack."

"Thank you." She gave me a great big Mom hug. When she let go, her smile faded into a look of concern. "Do you want to live with Grandma and Grandpa?"

I sighed. She's going to find out the truth sooner or later. "To be honest, I really don't. I mean, living there for a little while is okay, but I don't want to stay there forever."

She nodded. "Okay. I'll think of something. But you have to remember that I'm trying."

"I know." This time I gave her a hug. "Don't worry so much, Mom."

"You're right." She sighed before getting up. "Get packed. We'll just go to a motel or something for a while until I could afford something else."

"Okay." I hated whenever Mom was upset. I know anyone would be if their mom was upset, but my mom was different. She usually smiled all of the time. She's a cheery person unless she was complaining about something or just cranky. That's how Mom is! But when she's upset, it's a different story. There's a haunting tone to her expression and it will just stay there like some serious B.O. on a skunk. It was the haunted look in her face that would just kill you on the inside.

Once she left the room, I began packing. I guess today was going to be the first day to a new life. Dad must've done something terrible, so there's nothing left to do but leave.

"Makoto, you don't look so good." Tanemon said as I started coughing. "Are you okay?"

"It's just a cold." I coughed. "I'll be fine."

"No, it's not that." I dropped the shirt I was holding and paid full attention to what Tanemon had to say. What was she getting at? "It's your heart."

"What about my heart?"

"It seems to be broken."

I sighed, picking up my Digimon. "I guess I'm kind of upset. I mean, Dad does a lot of stuff, but he's never upset Mom to a point where she said that she's never coming back. I know that every time we leave to the grandparents', she doesn't say that we'll never come back. I guess…I am heartbroken."

"Don't be sad, Makoto. At least you have me." Tanemon smiled at me. It was nice and sincere and warm-welcoming. That was what I needed at the moment.

"Thank you, Tanemon." I gave her a huge hug. "You sure know how to make a guy happy."

"Come on. Let's pack up and leave him. Your dad deserves to be alone after what he's done to your mom."

I nodded before coughing again. By the end of today, I'm going to be exhausted!

_Pack! Pack! Pack!_

"Here's your new home for the next week!" Mom cheered as she opened the door to this run down motel. It was kind of…bad. It smelt kind of moldy, the lighting was dim, and the wall paper was stained with something I didn't want to know. Of course, I was saddened. This is the worst birthday surprise ever. No doubt about that! "I know it's not so good, but this is all I can afford right now until I get my next paycheck." She said this as she stepped inside the room and placed a suitcase on the bed. Suddenly and much to Mom's dislike, a roach crawled from underneath the covers and into the bathroom. She screamed at first and wrapped her arms around herself, but then she was fine. "It's going to be okay. Don't worry."

I nodded. "If you say so, Mom…"

"Makoto, I'm trying. This isn't easy for me either, you know." She took a deep breath. "Well, at least we can say that this is an adventure!"

"If you say so, Mom…"

I crawled into bed and shut my eyes as Tanemon climbed on top of my head. "I think he's just tired." She told Mom.

"You're probably right." Mom responded. "Sleep tight, Makoto."

But I didn't. I was kind of worried about Mom. Ever since we packed our things into Mom's van, she's been covering up her heartache with a fake smile. Anyone else would think it was real, but I didn't. The way she lifted those suitcases and tossed them in the trunk was something I would never forget. She didn't know I was there, but I still heard her mumbling about how Dad something something and Jen something something. I don't know who Jen is, but she must have something to do with something.

Every time I asked for answers, she would always say the same thing. "Don't worry about it."

"Mom…" I finally said in the middle of the night.

"What is it?" She asked full of concern. "Did you have a nightmare?"

"No." I turned over and scavenged the darkness for the lamp. When I found it, I turned it on (with much struggle might I add) to see Mom's face. "What happened between you and Dad?"

"Don't worry…"

"Mom," I pressed, "I want the truth."

She looked at me with intensity. I could tell that she was trying to decide whether or not to tell me. She knew I was ready. I just want her to just tell me already! "Makoto, you're getting to be a big kid. I'll just tell you that your dad was seeing someone else."

"What do you mean seeing someone else? Seeing someone else do what?"

"No," she laughed then got serious, "I mean that he's dating another woman."

"Oh." I only said. "Are you going to get a divorce?"

"No."

"But, Mom, Dad is cheating on you. Don't you think…"

"Makoto," she interrupted, "I'm not going to get a divorce because we weren't married."

"You weren't?" She shook her head. "Why not?"

She shifted her position and got a little more comfortable facing me. "Well," she said after a pause of thought, "you know how the guy will always get down to one knee, present a pretty ring, and say 'Will you marry me'?" I nodded. "Well, your dad never did that."

"Why not?"

She sighed. "I don't know."

I could tell she was upset by the way she turned onto her back and looked at the…stained ceiling. "Don't worry, Mom." I told her. "At least you have me."

She snapped her head towards me and saw the seriousness written on my face. Still, she didn't believe what she just heard. "Really?"

"Yes. I wouldn't want you to go off alone."

She gave me the first real smile I've seen all day. It was so nice. Just what I needed. "Thank you, son. That's what I really needed to hear."

I didn't know it was my cold or my sympathy talking, but something possessed me to get out of bed and take Tanemon with me. I stepped onto the cold somewhat mushy carpet and stopped at Mom's bed. She was confused when I lifted up the covers and crawled inside, snuggling into Mom's arms. That's when I felt something warm on the top of my head: a kiss. Just like her, comfort is what I needed, and the best way to get it is through a mother's kiss.

_Snore! Snore! Snore!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Snore! Snore! Snore!_

I woke up that next morning feeling pretty guilty. I know I shouldn't but I'm the one who nearly dragged Makoto here. The first thing I could do to was get on the internet and search for cheap apartments nearby. As I did this, Makoto woke up with a terrible cough. The last thing I needed was for him to choke to death! "Are you okay?" I asked him.

"Yeah, it's just a cold. I'll be fine." He said as he shifted a little in the covers, revealing his face. It was slightly discolored (just a little bit), his eyes were reddened (just a little), and sweat was glistening (you could barely notice). This only made me feel more guilt. I dragged my only son to a horrible motel when he was sick. Way to go, Mimi.

"Don't worry, Makoto. I'm going to run to the store and get you some medicine." I dug around in my suitcase for some clean clothes. I didn't put them in the drawers (or anywhere for that matter) because they were probably full of creepy crawlers and little furry friends. That's the last thing I needed. When I grabbed some, I headed for the shower. The worst part came when the water wouldn't come on. What kind of Motel is this? As a little girl, I would've cried, but I'm an adult now. I can't cry because of a little mishap like this, especially not in front of my son. Therefore, I sucked it up and got changed. "I'll be back!" I called before leaving.

I felt safe when I was actually at the store. There, I was alone. That is, I was the only one I knew. I was calling Sora as I went down the aisles. Unfortunately, she didn't answer my first seven calls. Before I tried another call, someone caught my attention. "Mimi?"

I turned around. "Izzy! Hi!" I greeted with a hug. "How are you?"

"I'm just fine. How are you?"

"Fine." I lied. I know that it's insincere of me to lie, but I didn't want him to worry about my problems. Unfortunately, he knew that. We used to date back when we were teenagers, so now he knows what I'm thinking before I said anything.

"Are you sure?"

I shook my head. "No. I left Norio yesterday."

"Oh, Mimi…" He was speechless. I could tell as his face just fell like a sack of potatoes. "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Don't be. It was only a matter of time anyway." The image of Norio and a mystery woman that I've never seen made me feel horrible. I felt like I was used. I didn't mean anything to him anymore. With Izzy standing there, made it pure instinct. I started bawling right in front of him. Back when we used to date, I could cry in front of him and Izzy would always take me in and wrap his arms around me. Then he did. It felt so warm and welcoming. I could just stay in his arms forever, but I remembered my son at that awful motel.

"Don't worry, Mimi. I'm always here for you. Just give me a call, okay?"

I nodded, wiping tears from my eyes. "Thank you, Izzy." I said. "I have to go." Sheepishly, I fled.

"Okay. Bye." He said after me.

But as he was walking the opposite direction away from me, I couldn't help but to watch him. I didn't remember what happened between us at this point. Why did we break up all of those years back?

Maybe it was the grief of a lost boyfriend talking, but I was thinking of him all the way to the motel. We used to be together all of the time. The last time I remembered kissing him was at the entrance to his college dorm building. That's where he and Tai shared dorm rooms. Why was it the last time again? Oh right. We broke up because of the long distance relationship. It didn't work then. He was just too busy and I was a million miles away.

As I fumbled around for my room key, I continued thinking of the time where I fantasized about being Mrs. Mimi Izumi. That's probably not going to happen now that he has a beautiful wife and a beautiful daughter. "Makoto, I'm back!" I called as soon as I got in.

"Mom, I'm here!" He called back. Him and Tanemon must've been having fun, I thought after hearing all of the giggles. I also noticed that he was fully dressed. "We were just watching a little TV."

"That's nice." I said pretty blankly. "Come here. Let me give you some medicine."

"Okay."

I poured the right amount into the tiny cup it came with and watched him gulp it down. "You won't believe who I saw at the store."

"Who?"

"Izzy. Do you remember him?"

He nodded. "That's the guy you used to date, right?"

"Right. How'd you know?"

"You told me." He sat down on his bed. "Look at what we found!"

I walked over to him and my laptop that was in his lap. "You're going to like it!" Tanemon cheered.

I looked closer to the screen which had a list of cheap apartments for rent. It was also in my budget, too! "Wow, good job Makoto!" I gave him a huge hug.

"It was Tanemon's idea."

I looked over at Tanemon who was on Makoto's head and smiling. "Thank you both." I told them.

"And this one is very close by!" Makoto pointed to one that was actually pretty cheap and was kind of cute. Then again, it's just a picture. What if we go over there and…? What difference would it make? It's better than here!

"It _is_ close! You can stay at the same school!" I gave him another hug. "Makoto, you and Tanemon did a very good thing!"

"Tell us something we don't know, Mom." Makoto laughed. "So when can we get out of here?"

"It kind of depends." I grabbed my purse. "Let's go over there and see."

"Yay!" Tanemon cheered.

_Drive! Drive! Drive!_

When I got to the place, I was honestly ready to turn back around. It was quiet. Too quiet. I've never been in a quieter place. I held Makoto close to me and Tanemon stayed on his head as we walked up to the tall information building thing. "Hello?" I called when we got there. No one was behind the desk at the time. Makoto tried ringing the table bell but it wouldn't work. "I'm here to rent an apartment!" I tried calling again.

"One minute!" Someone—a lady?—called back. Suddenly, there were a few rummaging sounds and then a loud crash. "Stupid box!" She yelled.

I looked down at Makoto who only looked at me without moving his head of course.

Then, the lady came out of a room that was on our right. She had short, messy grey hair and was as skinny as a toothpick. Her face was covered in a small amount of wrinkles so I guessed that she just turned fifty or something. "How can I help you?" She asked with a raspy voice before she coughed a loud, hacking cough. It was the kind smokers do.

"Yes," I continued, "I saw on the internet that you have some rooms available."

She only looked at me for a minute and looked at Makoto or Tanemon. Then she looked back at me and said "How many bedrooms do you want?"

"One." I answered before she hacked again.

"Let me check on my computer." She turned around and walked away. Honestly, this woman was making me uncomfortable. I think Makoto noticed when I kept on squeezing him closer to me.

"Wow, look at that!" Tanemon cheered. "It has a cool pool!"

"That is cool!" Makoto cheered. Their laughter came to a complete stop when the lady came back.

"You're in luck." She said. "We _do_ have one." She stepped around the desk and towards us. "Follow me." The lady started walking along a few steps before I followed her.

As we walked passed a few buildings, I noticed that there were a lot of kids running around. They were all poorly clothed and pretty skinny. One lady was there with the kids, but she was pretty large herself and poorly clothed as well. A little further from there, a fight was going on against two teenage guys and no one was watching or trying to stop them. Of course I was a little frazzled, but I knew it was going to be worth getting out of that motel where we heard police sirens all of the time.

"You'll be in building seventeen. I'm Stacie Gordon, your landlord. I'll take care of you if you need anything." She went up a few steps. "You'll be in 601." She pointed to the numbers on the door. "Remember that number." Then she took out some keys. When the door opened, a musty smell exploded out, making me wince. "The owner was a slob. The smell should go away once all of his stuff is gone." She stepped inside. Again, I hesitated before following.

"Do we get to meet the owner?" I asked, hoping she would say no.

Stacie only cackled. "The owner?" She laughed. "The owner's dead!"

"Did he die here?" Makoto asked.

"Oh, heavens, no. No one dies here. We're too classy!" What a lie! "The owner died in a car crash three blocks away."

I raised an eyebrow and looked around. It was kind of…bland. In fact, this place wouldn't look so bad if I just put a few things on the wall. "What do you think, Makoto?"

He shrugged. "It's better than the motel."

"How soon can we move in?"

Stacie looked around. "Judging by all of the stuff he has, I'd say you'll be ready to go by…what day is it?"

"Saturday." I told her.

"Then, it should be ready by next Friday." She smiled.

"That's nice!" I smiled at Makoto who was still looking around. "We'll be back then with our things."

"Good! Let's go back to my office and talk business!"

* * *

So that's chapter 7! Review and tell me what you think! Don't worry. This isn't the end of it! More to come later!


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: How do you like my original characters? Leave a review!

* * *

Chapter 8

Things were okay for a while. We've been living in our new apartment for a few months and it's been…okay. I have a lot to get used to. Mom always encourages me to bring friends to the new apartment but lately I've been embarrassed. When school started again, I was glad to see Yuu and Masa. To be honest, I was even glad to see Hitomi. This summer has been an adventure for me!

"Hey, where were you on the last day of school?" Yuu asked me in science once we finished the work for the day. Now, we just waited for the bell to ring to dismiss the class.

"Yeah, Dawn wanted to ask you out on a date!" Masa added.

"And she wanted to sign your yearbook." Yuu said.

I just shook my head as I flipped open my science book and flipped it back closed. "I was sick." I lied. Well, it was kind of a lie.

"Oh." Masa commented.

"Hey, are we still going to your house on Friday to play video games or are your grandparents going to live with you again?" Yuu asked. It was a realistic lie. Anyone could believe it!

"Yeah, we're having a cousin getting married. You know how my grandma is. Once she's here, she never wants to leave. Plus, Mom doesn't have the heart to kick her out." I hated lying but this one came out like vomit. "In fact, my grandparents could be staying for a very long time. They just came down here for a friend's funeral about a month ago. So Grandma is really in grief. She's going to need all of the support she can get."

"Oh, wow." Masa said. He ran a hand through his hair. "That sucks."

I nodded seconds before the bell rang. "Well, I'll see you guys at lunch." I picked up my book and notebook and headed out of the room as quickly as I could. Every time I lied, I always hear Mom scolding me not to. It's insincere, and therefore, I don't live up to my name.

I came across more trouble when I got to Math. I sat down in my cold desk (not the troubling part) and took out my math notebook when she came in. "Hi, Makoto." Hitomi greeted (the troubling part).

"Hi." I said back.

"You dropped this." She handed me a notebook. At first, I didn't know what it was. But then I recognized it. It was my special notebook. I didn't decorate the cover because people would get curious if they see it. I kept it bland to make it look like no big deal. But it was. I've written many personal things in it like special song lyrics, how I felt about Mom and Dad fighting. Those were my thoughts. My memories. My feelings. No one shall read it! At the moment, I was praying that she didn't.

"Thank you." I took the notebook and shoved it into my backpack. "You didn't read it did you?"

She shook her head. "Well, I only read some of the pretty song lyrics."

"And that's it?" She nodded. "Thank you."

"You know," she shifted her position to face me a little more, "I tried to go to your house and give it to you since you weren't here on the last day of school last year, but you weren't home. Your Dad was but he said you didn't live there anymore." My face instantly flushed. "What happened?"

"I just don't live with my dad anymore." I told her straight up. I don't know why I kept on spilling things in front of her of all people. It just naturally came. No matter how much I kept it inside, Hitomi would always get it out. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Why not?"

"I just…don't. Okay?" I said with a little more force than she's used to. "Just leave me alone." She grew quiet for the first time in a long time. Just great.

Then at the same time we said "I'm sorry." Then "No, _I'm_ sorry."

"Why are you sorry?" I asked her. "_I_ was the one who was kind of a jerk."

"I can understand that. But I should be the sorry one. It's your business and I should respect that enough to not ask. If you don't want to talk about it, I can't force you."

"No, it's cool." I sighed. "My parents have been having…problems."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

My heart skipped a beat after thinking about how upset Mom was. I couldn't put it in words how scared and worried I was, I am, I will be. How long will we have to go through this? How many times will I see Mom's haunting, upset face?

"I can't." I gathered my things up and rushed out of the classroom before the class officially started. The pain inside my chest made it hard for me to breathe. Why was this happening to me? Why do I have to be the one with all of the problems? I've been good! I haven't done anything wrong! I was just so mad I could just punch something! So I went into the bathroom which was cleared out and punched the wall to one of the stalls.

"Why?" I shouted, punching it again. "Why?" _Punch!_ "Why?" _Punch!_ "Why?" _Punch!_ And then I was done. My fist was swollen when I crashed onto the ground. My knees were pressed into my chest. I felt horrible like I've just finished throwing up. This whole time I was saying "Why me?" when I should've been saying "Why, Dad?" Why did Dad do what he did? Did he not care about how _I_ would feel?

I just sat there for a while, loosing track of time. That is, until the bell rang. It was lunch time, which meant people were expecting me in the lunch room. That's just the price of being popular! Anyway, I stepped out of the bathroom and felt pretty vulnerable. It was like stepping out of the movie theatre and having all of the light blind you. You wouldn't know what would come at you. That's how it felt.

"Makoto?" I heard someone call out. I looked up and saw Hitomi who was holding something behind her back. "You forgot someone." She pulled out what was behind her and revealed Tanemon.

"Tanemon!" I nearly cried out as I extended my hands. My Digimon was the one thing I really needed! She jumped into my arms and was engulfed into an embrace.

"You left her in Math class." Hitomi explained.

"Thank you, Hitomi." I gave her a hug. It was more of a reflex with its fast motion than an actual thought-out action. "You don't know how much I appreciate this."

"Wow! Having a Digimon must be amazing!" She said as I let go.

"It is if you knew what I've been through."

Tanemon jumped onto my head. "Let's go to the cafeteria before they run out of food!" She told me.

"Right." I turned to Hitomi who was facing a different direction. "Aren't you coming to lunch?"

"No, I'm going to the computer lab." She said. "I'm skipping lunch."

"Why?"

"There's no one to sit with." And with that, she walked away.

"See you later!" I called after her.

"Bye!"

What a weird girl.

_School! School! School!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Work! Work! Work!_

I was swamped when the lunch rush came and went, but I was glad to be at work while my son was happily at school. My boss is glad I'm here too seeing as I've missed a few days to move. Now, I'm back waiting tables and chatting with the chefs. Well, at least I _was_ happy until one of my friends, a fellow waitress, Julie told me something. "Isn't that your ex?" She pointed her pink fingernails to a table. There sat Tai, Matt, and Izzy.

I nodded, not keeping my eyes off of them. "Yes. How'd you know?"

"You told me you used to go out with him in high school." Julie smiled. I must've told everyone about us! "I really like his friend. Tai, right?" She looked at Tai who was smiling amusingly at something. Then, she seriously said to me "Do you want me to get rid of them?"

I shook my head. "No, let me take care of it."

"Okay, if you need me, give me the waitress call." She raised a hand in the air and snapped her fingers three times. "I'll be clearing the tables." She gave me a pat on the shoulder before leaving.

I looked around for my boss before stripping my apron. Luckily for me, it was the only uniform piece I had to wear! I never told anyone except for Norio that I worked here. I hated to admit that Izzy was right. I should've gone to college. If I did, I wouldn't be stashing my apron under table five.

"Hi, guys." I greeted, sitting in the available seat which happened to be next to Izzy.

"Hi, Mimi." They all greeted at once.

"What are you doing here?"

"Well, Matt and I were talking and we thought we should go to lunch together like we used to do in high school." Tai explained. "Next thing you know, we gathered up the guys and went to the nearest restaurant."

"Yeah, I heard that there's this waitress who really knows her stuff." Matt said. "She could tell you what you were ordering better than the menu can."

Izzy, who was strumming his fingers on the table, nodded in agreement. I assumed that he does this because of computer withdrawal. "I heard of her. They say that she also recommends food that isn't even on the specials list. I think that's very impressive."

I nodded. "It is, isn't it?"

"Yeah, _she_ should be the cook and have her own show!" Matt said. "Dad's looking for something new to put on TV!"

"What if she doesn't have that much cooking experience?" I asked.

"I'm pretty sure someone that knows that much about food should know a thing or two on how to make it." Tai said as Izzy nodded in agreement.

"She could be a big star." Izzy said.

And then, my eyes immediately lit up. That could be me! I could be the big star! Mimi Tachikawa with her name up in lights! "What if I told you that waitress was me?" I told them. But instead of the good words and congratulations, I got a barrel of laughs. "Why are you laughing?"

"That can't be you." Izzy said.

"Why not?"

"Because last time I checked, Matt was the cook." Tai said.

I sighed as I reached under table five for my apron and put it on. Then, I waited for their reaction. Instead of good words and congratulations, again, they just stared. "Well?"

"Still not convinced." Matt said.

"What do you think about today's special?" Tai asked.

"I can't remember what it is, but I don't recommend it. It's very fattening too. Tai, I recommend you get the Mustard-Crusted Pork with Carrots and Lentils. It is pork tenderloin brushed with mustered and rolled-on bread crumbs to give it that nice crunch and a delicious flavor. It's also served with lentils that were mixed in a pot with chicken broth, garlic, and thyme; and roasted carrots. It's a very nice simple French meal. Do you believe me now?"

Matt smiled. "I believe you." He said. "Now, what do you recommend me?"

"For you, Matt, I recommend the Mahi-mahi with Charred Onions, Tomatoes, and Tapenade Vinaigrette. It's a nice vinaigrette that consists of a broiled mahi-mahi with charred vegetables and pan juices for advanced flavor. It also has this wonderful kick of tapenade on top. Believe me when I say that it's delicious!"

I turned to Izzy to do his next. "I think you should have the Miso-Glazed Sea Bass with Asparagus. It's a very simple meal, but believe me when I say that it's one of my favorites! In it we have a mixture of miso, sugar, lemon juice, water, and pepper that's spread over a nicely broiled sea bass and crisp-tender asparagus."

"Are you sure you don't know how to cook?" Izzy asked. "You seem to know everything!"

"I've only cooked a few times." I blushed. "But I talk to the chefs in the kitchen all of the time. So do you want to eat that or something else? I just want to remind you that it was only a recommendation. You can order whatever you want."

"I think we'll have what you said!" Tai said. "It sounds nice!"

I smiled. "Okay. Coming up!"

_Eat! Eat! Eat!_

"Okay, I'm full!" Tai said as soon as he finished.

"Me too." Izzy said.

"You should think about it." Matt said, looking at the bill. "Dad could really use another show after the talk show got cancelled."

"You think I could?" All I could think about was using the money from starring in my own TV show to get a house for Makoto to grow up in. But still, stardom has a price to pay. What if I'm put on the road a lot? What if Makoto gets sick and I couldn't take care of him because I'm too busy being on TV?

"Go for it!" Tai said. "It would be so cool to know a TV star!"

I knew for sure that I wanted to, but there were the consequences I had to consider. "Let me think about it." I took the check from Matt when he was done paying and the others put their money in. "I'm a single mother now. I have to talk to my son."

"No problem." Matt told me. "Just give me a call whenever you're ready."

"Okay." I nodded as they got up. "Thank you! And thanks for coming and I hope you come again!" I waved as they left.

Me? On TV?

Of course, I had to tell Makoto. But I decided to wait. We were fine the way things are now. At least, that's what I thought until I saw Makoto looking depressed when he came home from school. It was time for a change, but I don't know about a huge change like being on TV.

"Makoto, how was school?" I asked.

But he didn't answer the question. Instead, he had another question of his own. "When are we moving out of this apartment?"

It was an obvious problem. Why didn't I see this before? At that point, I knew how I was going to change. If this doesn't work, I'll take the TV alternative. Good work, Mimi! I can handle this myself!

_Months go by! Months go by! Months go by!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Months go by! Months go by! Months go by!_

"Makoto, I have good news for you!" Mom called as soon as I got home from school the next day. It was about a month before my birthday and she already has a surprise for me! "Makoto guess what!"

"What?" I asked, coming into the living room with Mom.

"You're going to love this." She patted the spot on the couch next to her.

At first, I was contemplating whether or not I should sit down. The last time she gave me "good news" we ended up in this apartment. But I sat down anyway. She was my mom. She was trying the best she could on such short notice.

"How badly do you want to move out of this apartment?" She asked me.

"Really badly!" I shouted. "I'm sorry, but I don't like the neighborhood. It makes us look poor. We're not poor, are we?"

She didn't answer that last question. Great. "Well, guess what! I saved enough money to rent a house!"

My eyes widened. "We get to live in a house?" She nodded. "Thanks Mom! This is an awesome birthday present!"

"Makoto, this isn't for your birthday."

"Believe me when I say that it is. I don't want anything more than to get out of this area. The kids are outside all of the time and they look like they can't afford anything."

She laughed. "You're definitely my son. I used to make fun of the poorly dressed kids too."

"So when are we moving?"

"In a few days." She said. "Go ahead and start packing. I hope you don't mind, but you're going to have to miss school for the next few days."

"Okay." I said before dashing into my room. "Tanemon! Tanemon, guess what!"

"What is it, Makoto?" She asked. Her eyes were all droopy so I assumed that she just woke up.

"We're moving!"

"Again?"

I nodded. "But this time, we move to a house!"

"A house? We haven't been in one of those for almost a whole year!"

"That's what makes this birthday the best ever! I get to spend it in a house, Mom and Dad won't be fighting, we won't have to move to the grandparents', and I get to spend it with you! I can't wait to get there!"

Unlike the apartment idea, this didn't turn out to be a horrible thing. Our new house was very small and petite. There were only one bedroom for me and a master bedroom for Mom. Plus, there was only one bathroom that Mom and I share. My favorite part was that it was in a quiet neighborhood. No poor looking kids for miles!

When I got back to school, the first thing I did was tell my friends. "Hi, Yuu!" I shouted. "Hi, Masa!"

"What's up, Makoto?" Yuu asked.

"Where were you?" Masa asked.

"I moved to a new house. You want to stop by after school and see it?"

"Yeah!" Masa cheered. "And it's Friday so do you still want to do our Friday night thing?"

"You bet!"

And from that moment on, I felt like I was on top! I felt that everything was back to normal. Well, it was almost back to normal. Even if Dad isn't here, I could still live the life I use to live. Everything should be fine for another year.

Or so I thought.

* * *

That's chapter 8! And it's the last one with Mimi and Makoto's seperate story. From now on, everyone's story will come together. :)


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: Don't get confused! Try to pay close attention to the time and age of the kids! We're about to cross over! :)

* * *

Chapter 9

"Good Morning, Makoto." I said one summer morning. School let out a week ago and we've just celebrated my son's twelfth birthday with all of his friends. It was a huge party! I've never seen my son so happy! That's why it's so hard to tell him that we're going to have to move again. I couldn't afford to rent the house for another year. In fact, I couldn't afford anything. I don't know where we're going to live now. Lately, I've been waking up the same way: scared of what might happen. I was supposed to be finding a place by now and I only have three more weeks until we're kicked out.

"Are you okay, Mom?" He asked me as he was walking into the kitchen to fix him some cereal.

"Yes," I nodded, "I'm fine."

"You've been acting weird lately." He poured the cereal into the bowl.

I leaned against the doorframe of the kitchen. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"Okay." He poured the milk and set it aside. Then, he started chomping down. My only son is growing up to be a teenager, which means I have a messy eater on my hands!

"Makoto, put up the milk." I told him seconds before the phone rang. I had a feeling I knew who it was before checking the caller I.D. And I was right. It was Sora. Who else would wake up so early and call me? "Hello?"

"Hi, Mimi!" She said with excitement. "It feels like we haven't talked in a long time!"

"I know! It's been hard." I sighed. "It's been two years since I left Norio and I'm about to run out of options."

"What?" There was a pause. "I thought you were living in a house now."

I took the phone into the master bedroom before I continued. "I rented it for a year and the year is almost up in three weeks. And I can't afford another place to live. I don't know what to do."

There was a pause. I assumed she was thinking of something. "Don't worry, Mimi. You have three weeks. You know what you could do? Come to the Digital World in a few minutes. We're all going to be there with our kids! You should stop by!"

"Okay!" I exclaimed. "That would be fun! Let me tell my little one right now. I'll meet you there!"

"Alright! Bye, Mimi!"

We hung up the phone not a moment too soon as I bolted to the kitchen. "Guess where we get to go!" I told him in a sing-song voice.

"Where? The mall?" He asked.

"No, better!" Did that come out of my mouth? "Anyway, we're going to the Digital World! We'll get to see all of our friends!"

"You mean all of your friends?" I was taken aback by his question. "All of those kids aren't my friends, Mom."

"Then make friends. We're going over there."

He shrugged and put his empty bowl into the sink. "Okay. Where is it?"

"Come with me." I held his hand and lead him to the computer. "Where's your Digimon and your Digivice?"

He pulled the Digivice out of his pocket. "Come here, Tanemon!" He yelled. The Digimon hopped her way out of his room and onto Makoto's head. "Ready, Mom."

"Good." I logged onto the computer and tampered a little with it. "Now, how do I do this again?" Next thing I knew, I opened the DigiPort! "Here we go!"

_Zip! Zip! Zip!_

"Hey, everybody, Mimi's here!" Yukio shouted as soon as we got there. He was growing up to be such a nice boy! How cute was he?

It was a nice day to be in the Digital World. There was a nice breeze and the sun was shining. Everyone else seemed to be alive and healthy. They've all grown so much! Memories just came flooding in.

"Hey, everybody, T.K.'s here!" Yukio shouted as T.K. and his son came into view.

I bent down to my son. "Make sure you share with the other kids."

"Right." He smiled. Then he put Tanemon down on the ground before heading off.

That's when I noticed Izzy by himself with his daughter. "Make sure you don't act like a rammcat!" He told Hitomi.

"Or a thimmchip!" She replied before heading off.

I watched as Davis and his son joined the party. While they were talking, I was thinking of Izzy. Those times were some of the best of my life. I know I was just a teenager those years back but that doesn't mean I would want those times again. He used to be my computer geek. I was his first girlfriend and apparently not his last.

I rested my chin against my fist as I watched the other kids play. My beautiful boy was getting along nicely with the others. But I turned my attention back into our abode problems. Looking down at my boots, I was mentally panicking over what I was going to do.

"Are you okay?" Izzy asked.

I quickly took my attention off of my boots and onto his gorgeous black eyes. "Well…" I shook my head, deciding not to continue that sentence. "I'll be fine."

He nodded and sighed, watching Hitomi tagging Yukio.

"Are _you_ okay?"

He shook his head. "I just signed some divorce papers yesterday."

"You did?" I asked. "What happened?"

"Kayo is…currently involved with another relationship. It's Norio."

"Norio and Kayo…?"

He nodded.

Much to both of our surprise, I let out a laugh. "We sure get ourselves into crazy things!"

"Yeah?" He asked with curiosity.

"Yes. Even when we were kids we were dragged to the Digital World. Now, we got ourselves into complicated relationships!" I chuckled a little. "Why do you think that is?"

"Who knows?" Izzy joined in my laughter. Again, I flashed back to all of the laughs we used to share.

"You know, it's been a long time since we really talked." I said. "Do you want to get together sometime and get coffee or something?"

"Yeah, we definitely need to catch up on old times." He nodded.

"Then it's a date!"

He nodded. "A date…" He repeated. "A date…?"

I shrugged. "Call it whatever you want. It doesn't have to be a date if you don't want it to be one."

"No, no!" I could've sworn that he was blushing. "A date is fine."

I nodded with a smile. "Okay."

I was a fool back then to let a beautiful man like him go. What was I thinking? What influenced me? Maybe he would know.

In the meantime, I decided to take on the job Matt's dad offered me. Right after our trip to the Digital World, I went over to the TV station and asked him about it. "If you can, I would like for you to perform live every weekday at four and you'll be done at four-thirty." He was telling me. "That way, you can still have those flexible hours and you only work for thirty minutes five days a week."

"And the pay?" I asked. "How much will I be getting?"

"Let me tell you this." He snatched a sticky note from one of the workers that were rushing by. Then, he grabbed a pen from the next guy that dashed in the same direction. "If you get me tons of viewers, I can multiply this…" He wrote down a number with (let's just say) a _lot_ of zeroes. "…to this." He scribbled down a few more zeroes. This made me smile.

"I think I like that!"

"Great! I can get you started in three to five months."

My heart just sank. "Five months?" I asked, nearly choking on the words.

"Yes." He answered then explained. "We still have a few more episodes of _Junk in the Trunk_'s last season. Then we'll set up the hype, get people talking, plan out and design the show, and have it ready. Then, we'll put your show in its place. You'll get paid every two weeks."

I nodded. On the inside I was panicking. I needed the money in two weeks so I can get a house! Even three weeks would be okay. We would've just packed extra fast. Now, I still had something to worry about for the next three weeks, but there's nothing I can do about that. Oh well. What was I thinking? "Thank you, Mr. Ishida." I shook his hand and left. This is definitely a conversation starter for tomorrow's coffee date!

_Tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!_

Here I am. Izzy Izumi. I'm back.

I woke up feeling like a whole new man. Today, I was going to have coffee with an old friend. My ex-girlfriend. Wow!

"Dad, someone's on the phone." Hitomi told me as she crawled onto my bed with the phone in hand.

"Who is it?"

She shrugged. "I think it's Mimi, Makoto's mom."

I grabbed the phone from her and shooed her out of the room. "Hello?"

"Hi, Izzy!" She sounded so sweetly on the phone.

Ever since we've met in the Digital World, I couldn't stop thinking about her. What made us break up all of those years back? Why did I leave such a beautiful woman? I couldn't say that I made a terrible mistake only because I wouldn't have Hitomi if I didn't break up with Mimi.

Maybe getting coffee with Mimi is a good idea. Maybe it's a sign for me to be the one that I'm truly happy with. Plus, she's a DigiDestined so owning a Digimon shouldn't be a problem for her as it was to Kayo. But it's only been a few days since I ended it with Kayo. Am I ready for that? I guess I wouldn't know until I take the risk.

"Hi, Mimi!" I greeted. "So when did you want to get together?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe we could go in about an hour. But who's going to watch the kids?"

"Just bring Makoto over here. That way the kids can play together and their Digimon can protect them if there's a problem." I suggested.

"Good idea! We'll be over there in an hour!"

"Great! See you then." After we said our goodbyes, I hopped out of bed and rushed into the living room. "Hitomi!" I called. "Is your room clean?"

She poked her head out of her room. "Why do you ask? Is Yukio coming over?"

"No, but Makoto is." I told her. "Him and Tanemon."

"Cool!" She cheered. "He hasn't been here before!"

I couldn't help but to smile at her excitement. Maybe now she'll have someone (other than Motimon) to call a friend! "They'll be here in an hour so get ready. Okay, rammcat?"

"You got it, thimmchip!"

As she did that, I rushed into the closet and looked at a bunch of outfits. This is the first date with Mimi in a long time and I don't want to mess it up! One quick shower, brushing of the teeth, washing of the face, a few quick changes, and a splash of cologne later, Hitomi shouted "Hey, Dad! There's someone at the door!"

"Coming! I'll get it!" I shouted, bolting out of the master bedroom and to the front door. When I opened it, I had a full view of Mimi's same cowgirl looking outfit she wore before. She was still stunning no matter what she wore! "Mimi, hi!"

"Hi, Izzy." She smiled. "You remember, Makoto."

"Of course." I bent down to his level. "Hitomi is so excited to see you."

"Is she?" He asked sarcastically which earned a smack on the back of the head from his mother.

"Be nice, I said." She demanded. Then to me, she said "So are you ready to go?"

I nodded. "Let me tell Hitomi and Motimon that I'm leaving."

"Okay. Makoto, you follow him."

"Okay." He did as he was told as I headed to my daughter's room.

When I opened the door, she was drawing something in her notepad as she lied on the floor. She and Motimon turned to look at me, but their faces instantly glowed when they saw Makoto and Tanemon. "Hi, Makoto!" Hitomi greeted.

"Hi, Hitomi." He said back with a small wave.

"Don't be shy." Mimi told him. "Go on in and make friends."

"But Mom…" He said to her in a faint whisper.

"I said make friends." She hissed through gritted teeth.

"Okay." He sat down next to her.

"Good! Now, Izzy and I will be back later." She said with a beautiful smile on her face. She's so cheery! Why would Norio leave her? Most importantly, why would _I_ leave her? "Hitomi, tell me if Makoto gives you any problems."

"Oh there won't be." She said. "We get along nicely at school."

"That's great to hear!" Mimi grabbed my hand and held it tight. "Well, we'll just leave you two alone."

"Bye!" I called before we left.

_Coffee! Coffee! Coffee!_

We ended up going to Mimi's favorite coffee place. Sure the coffee was good and the atmosphere was nice. The only problem was the awkward silence we had that lasted a few seconds after actually getting the beverages. "So…" She said, trying to begin a conversation. "How's it going?"

"Just fine." I answer. "How about you?"

She sighed. "I've been better."

"Oh really? What's the problem?"

She didn't answer at first. She just sat there in silence, probably thinking of a way to put it in words. "Well, I rented a house and I don't have enough money to keep it. We've lived in it for a year and the year is almost up and I can't even afford a new place. Makoto thinks that we're poor. And I don't want him to think that, but the truth is that we are. I could barely afford to breathe. This is all Norio's fault you know! If he would've asked me to marry him years ago, he could help pay child's support." At this point, Mimi could continue on forever! But she didn't. She ended it with a powerful question that I didn't know the answer to. "What did I do to deserve this?"

"Nothing. You don't deserve him." Out of instinct, I held her hand. I held it tight. "You're beautiful and sincere. You deserve nothing but the best."

She exhaled loudly as if all of her troubles were exiting at once, leaving nothing but a pretty smile. "You too. Why did Kayo leave an awesome guy like you?"

I smiled and shrugged. "Who knows? She must've met a more awesome guy."

Unexpectedly, she slid out of her booth and sat next to me. Then, she wrapped her arms around me. It was a hug that I longed for and missed. "There's no such thing."

Once she let go, it all came back to me. All of those good memories of us flooded into my mind, engulfing anything and everything possible. I remembered the first time we held hands, our first hug, our first kiss, our first fight, our first goodbye. Why did we let that go? Was it too late to have that again?

As I contemplated that, I was staring into those gorgeous chocolate eyes. They were so pure to me. I don't care if she had sex before marriage. I don't care if her and Norio never got married. I don't care if she has a bastard child **(A/N: "Bastard child" meaning child born without wedded parents)**. Then, I felt something inside of me pulling me closer to her. My heart started to race and my hand started to stretch, touching her soft and delicate hand. I leaned in closer and closer until I could smell her breath. That's when I realized that she was leaning towards me too. At that point, I didn't feel embarrassed to gently touch her lips with mine.

I remembered the first time we kissed. I was so confused. But now, I knew what was going on. I was falling again. No, I was drowning. I was drowning and I didn't want to be saved. I want things to be like they were. But this time, we won't break apart with unresolved issues. I want to start over, to start fresh. Let's leave the past behind us.

As our kiss lasted for as long as it did, I reached up and caressed her face. Then, she wrapped her arms around me and pulled me closer. That's when our kiss became a lot more passionate. There was no point in stopping. We were both single and alone, seeing no one. We were free.

But we had to stop for air. When we pulled apart, Mimi was panting a little, still looking at me as I did the same. "Izzy," She said, "what happened between us?"

I looked down at my lap as if the answer was written on my pants. Then, I looked back into her eyes. "We were young and stupid enough to believe that long distance relationships wouldn't work." I said. "That was when I left for college."

"We were young and stupid." She repeated. Then, she chuckled a little. "We were definitely young and stupid!" Mimi looked down at her hands and back to me. "Are we stupid enough to do it again?"

"I don't know." I told her. "Maybe."

Then, like music, she whispered to me. "Kiss my, Koushiro." Who was I to say no?

_Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!_

"So what do you want to do?" Hitomi asked me.

I rolled my eyes. Coming here was not my idea. I don't even know why I'm here. I could take care of myself at home with no problem. "You decide." I told her.

"Well, maybe we could…" Suddenly she stopped. "Oh boy."

"What is it?" Everything got quiet. Then, I heard the sound of kids laughing. But they weren't just any kids. It was Yuu and Masa. You could hear Masa's snort and laugh from a mile away!

"It's those boys again." She said.

"What about them?"

"They live down the street. Whenever I'm outside and they go for their walks, they make fun of me. I don't even know why. They keep calling me weird."

"They do?" I asked, getting up from her bed, where I've been sitting for the past few minutes, and marched to the front door.

"Yeah. I hate it when they do that. That's why I don't go outside much."

I stopped at the door and turned back to Hitomi who was behind me. "No offense, but since you don't have any friends or siblings and you just got your Digimon not too long ago, what do you do outside?"

"Jump rope. Or watch the birds. Or just think." She shrugged. "Typical stuff."

I only stared for a few seconds before saying "Okay." I opened the door and saw Masa and Yuu walking past the house. As soon as they heard me open the door, they turned around with expressions full of awe.

"Dude, what are you doing at her house?" Yuu shouted.

"Yeah, what are you doing with…" Masa started.

Then they both finished with "…Hitomi Izumi: the weird girl!" Then they erupted into laughter.

"Hey, back off, okay?" I asked them, being as nice as I could.

Once they stopped and Masa's snorts came to an end, he spoke again. "Okay, but seriously, what are you doing with her?"

"Yeah, did she lure you in with her weirdness?" Yuu asked, adjusting his glasses.

"Guys, knock it off." I warned them again.

"Maybe that's his new girlfriend!" Masa joked. But that was taking it too far.

I grabbed the collar to Masa's hoodie. "I said knock it off!" I exclaimed as I shook him a little then let him go. "If you have to know, our parents are on a date."

"A date?" Yuu asked.

"Yes." I rolled my eyes, knowing that I had to clarify a little more. "Her dad is with my mom. Okay?"

"So that almost makes you…" Masa started.

"…brother and sister!" Yuu finished with a laugh followed by a few snorts and a laugh from Masa.

I looked at Hitomi who looked very upset, so fragile. I couldn't stand to leave her this way. Seeing that only made me feel protective of her. "Yes, what's your point?"

The laughter stopped like a record scratch. "What?" Masa asked.

"You heard me." I told them. "Hitomi is my sister. Do you have a problem with that?"

The two looked at each other and back at me. "No." Yuu said. "Sorry. We didn't know."

"It's okay."

"Don't worry. We won't tell everyone at school." Masa said.

I looked back at Hitomi again who had a smile on her face but her eyes were full of tears. "You know what, I don't care who you tell. Tell everyone. I don't care." Before they could respond, I was already headed back inside. "Come on, Hitomi. Let's do something inside."

"Coming!" I heard her running behind me. I didn't realize how close she was until I closed and locked the door and she was there to give me a huge hug. "Thank you, Makoto!"

"It's no problem." I told her, wanting just to shake her off. But it didn't work. She just kept hugging. "Really…"

"No, I mean it! That was a very nice thing you did!" She gave me a little squeeze. "No one ever tried sticking up for me before." Then she let go. "But do you really mean what you said? Do you really not care what others think when they hear that the most popular boy in school is related to the weirdest girl in school?"

I shrugged. "It doesn't bother me. If they really like me, they wouldn't make fun of us."

She smiled. "Do you think I'm weird?"

I gulped at the question. The last thing I needed was her to cry after I stuck up for her. "I have to be the only one at school who doesn't make fun of you." I told her.

"But you still think I'm weird." She looked down at her feet as Motimon and Tanemon entered the room.

"I only think it because I don't know you." I said truthfully. "If I got to know you, I would probably understand why you do the things you do… I'm sorry for all of the insults you've been hit with."

Out of nowhere, a tear fell down her cheek. I couldn't tell if she was upset at me for what I said or reliving the pain of others making fun of her. Then she said "Makoto, that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me." She sat down onto the couch. "You don't know how long I've waited for someone to step up to me and apologize."

I sat down next to her. "Don't worry. Those kids shouldn't make fun of you anymore."

* * *

So that's chapter 9! Leave a review and tell me what you think!


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: What do you think? I made it a record to write more pages into each chapter! So far, I've average seven pages (using Microsoft word) for each chapter! In total, I have 67 pages! My longes fanfic! And it's not even done yet!

A/N (2): Lately, I've been having trouble updating (as you can see). This chapter would've went up last Saturday. Thanks for hanging in there!

Chapter 10

When we got back from the coffee place, Izzy and I walked hand-in-hand to the front steps. I knew something was going to happen between us. Just like our first date, he paid for everything and we were about to depart but couldn't let go of each other's hand. I was falling in love all over again, and there was nothing I could do about it. I couldn't help it. I gave him a kiss when we got to the front door. "I had a nice time." I told him.

"Me too." He agreed. "You know, I've been doing some thinking on the way back."

"I know." I commented with a smile. "You haven't said anything."

He smiled back at me. "I know, but it was some serious thinking."

"What about?"

"About your situation." He got serious again. "Mimi, you're my friend. I want to help you."

Hearing those last five words were like music to my ears. Coming from him made it sound even sweeter. "What did you have in mind?" I sighed. "I don't think there's anything…"

I stopped when he looked into my eyes and held both of my hands. I could stare and get lost into those black orbs forever! "Move in with me."

"Oh Izzy…" I smiled. "You mean it?"

"I do. I really mean it." He took out his keys and started unlocking the door. "Just take a look around before you say no."

"Okay." Once he opened the door, I saw Makoto and Hitomi sitting on the living room couch. They were actually talking and making friends with each other! Maybe moving in won't be too much of a bad idea.

"Hi, Mom!" Makoto called, not turning to see me holding hands with Izzy.

"Hi, sweetie!" I called back, hoping he doesn't turn around. It would be a huge shock for him I bet.

Izzy's house seemed to be one big room. The living room was shaped to be very spacious and, from the front door, you can see the rest of the house. The master bedroom was to the right with the kitchen immediately next to us. The back door was directly in front of us. Going down the circle to the left was Hitomi's room directly across the master bedroom. Then there was another room on our right. When Izzy took me inside, I saw that it was a spacious room with only a computer sitting on top of a desk and a book shelf. "This is our computer room, but I could easily turn it into a guest room. Unfortunately, this is all I have, so you and Makoto could share this room. Or him and Hitomi could share a room."

I smiled as the lump in my throat began to form again along with tears of joy. "Thank you." I gave him a hug. "You don't know how much this means to me."

"Hey, that's what friends are for!" He chuckled.

"I'll have to talk to Makoto about it. Let me get back to you later." I slung my purse over my shoulder. "Thanks again." I felt so happy that I had to give him another kiss. This time he accepted it with much gusto!

_Drive home! Drive home! Drive home!_

"Sit down, Makoto. We need to talk." I said as soon as we entered the house.

"Am I in trouble?" He asked, setting Tanemon down.

"Well, no. But you might be a little disappointed." He sat on the couch in response and I sat next to him. Then he nodded for me to continue. "Honey, I know you hate moving all of the time…"

"We're moving again? But I actually like this place." He raised his voice. "Things were actually getting back to normal! We were living nicely! Why do we have to move?"

"Makoto, I can't afford to live here anymore. Remember? We only rented this house for a year."

He sighed. "I knew it." He said quietly. "We _are_ poor."

"Makoto…"

"Mom, stop it!" He erupted, standing up. "Stop sugar-coating the truth! Just admit that we're poor! I'm twelve years old! I can handle it!"

"You're right. You're old enough to know that we're not poor. We just don't have enough money. The point is that we have to move again."

"Damn it, Dad!" He kicked the couch and started pacing the floor. This anger of his came out of nowhere. He's never done this before. I hope he doesn't need any professional help.

"Makoto, watch your language!" I yelled. Then I grabbed him on the shoulders. "Don't you remember when I told you that I'm trying? You said 'I know' and 'Don't worry, Mom'. You know I'm trying my best!"

He crossed his arms. "Yeah, I remember."

"Makoto, you have to have more faith in Mom." Tanemon said from the coffee table. "I'm sure she has a plan."

I smiled. "Tanemon's right. I do have a place in mind."

"No, I'm not going back to that motel!"

"I wasn't talking about the motel!" I took a deep breath and tried to keep my cool. "Earlier when I was with Izzy, we were talking. Then he offered that we move in with him." I paused to see what he would say. At first he was quiet.

"So, I'm going to share a house with Hitomi?" His eyes were low to the ground but they were still moving about. He was thinking. As soon as he stopped, he looked at me with a smile. "Okay."

"You mean it?" He nodded. "That's wonderful!" I gave him a hug, but then I remembered our room situation. "But there _is_ still a problem."

He sighed exaggeratedly. "What?"

"Well, Izzy only has one room for us. So that means you would have to share with one other person: me or Hitomi."

He sighed and thought about it. "I'll share with you, Mom."

"You will?"

"Yeah." He shrugged. "It's no big deal. Really."

"You mean it?"

"Yeah. It'll be fine."

"Great! Go get packing!" As soon as he and Tanemon were in the bedroom, I grabbed the phone. Finally after fifteen years, I get to be with Izzy again! "Izzy?" I called after he picked up the phone. "I've thought about it." I paused before saying "When can you expect us over?"

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

"Hitomi!" I called after hanging up the phone. "Hitomi, come here! It's important!"

She bolted out of the room with Motimon holding on for dear life on her shoulder. "What is it, Dad? Is Tentomon okay?"

"Yes, Tentomon's okay." I laughed. "It's really something else."

"What is it?" She asked, sitting on the couch. Then, she gave the seat next to her to Motimon.

"Well, Mimi and I have done some talking. You see, she's in trouble." I told her as I sat next to her.

"What kind of trouble?"

"Financial trouble." I sighed, thinking that it wasn't a good idea to share this information. But I had to. "She's going to lose her house. She and Makoto don't have anywhere else to go."

She looked at the computer room and back at me. "I just had a glixing idea! Why don't we turn the computer room into a guest room! They can stay here!"

For once, Hitomi did the hard part for me. Now, I didn't have to worry about having her bizzle out about the whole adjustment! "That _is_ a glixing idea!"

"When are they coming over?"

"Well, they're packing right now, so it could be about a week."

"Okay! I can't wait!" She hopped off of the couch. "So are they both going to be in the computer room?" I nodded. "Okay. I'll clean my room anyways."

"Okay, I'll help!" Motimon cheered.

"No, you won't. You're going to mess it up like you always do. I haven't had to clean up my room so many times in a week for a long time!"

"I'm sorry." He sulked.

"It's okay. You can come in but sit on the bed."

I smiled as the two disappeared. Then immediately I ran to the phone and dialed the number. "Hi, Tai!" I nearly shouted when he answered.

"Hey, what's up, Izzy?" He asked.

"Mimi's going to move in with me!"

"She is?" He asked. "Why?"

"Well, she's having a bit of financial troubles, but that's not the point."

"Wait a minute. What happened to Norio? Isn't he a lawyer?"

"She broke up with him two years ago, Tai! You're missing the point!" I crossed into the computer room and closed the door.

"What's the point?"

"Mimi is moving in with me!"

There was a pause on the other line. Tai must be trying his best to connect the dots. "So…?"

"Don't you remember when we used to date back then?"

"Oh, I get it! Congratulations, Izzy, you hooked a good one!"

"Thank you." I said, looking at what was inside the desk. How am I going to move this and where am I going to move it to? "Remember the computer room that you called a waste of space?"

"Yeah. Is she going to stay there?"

"Yep! I'm using that space after all." I sighed as I fell down to the floor. "I really called to tell you how happy I was."

"Really?" He asked. "Why are you so happy?"

"Because it's Mimi!" I sighed, thinking about Mimi's pretty face. "Tai, I think I'm falling for her all over again."

Tai only laughed at my statement. "You are? Man, you should go for it!"

"What? Really?"

"Yes! You're divorced and she's without a boyfriend! You have the perfect chance!"

"You mean I should really ask her to be my girlfriend?"

"That's exactly what I mean!"

"Okay, if you say so… I'll do it!" I sprung off of the floor. But then my excitement was put on hold when this question popped up into mind. "How will I do that? I'm not as smooth as I was back in high school."

"Izzy, are you forgetting that you weren't smooth in the first place? She liked you for who you are. You're real to her. I'm sure you can think of something."

"Maybe I should ask her out to dinner tonight."

"No, not tonight!"

"Why not?"

"She's too busy packing! You're going to smother her before she gets there!"

"Oh, okay. Right." I thought for a minute. "Let me get back to you, Tai. I better prepare dinner for Hitomi."

"Okay, bye, Izzy! Or should I say Mr. Smooth!"

"Your sarcasm has been noted, Tai!" We both laughed. "Bye."

_Days go by! Days go by! Days go by!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Days go by! Days go by! Days go by!_

Here we are. The Izumi house. This is going to be the start of another saga in my life. What if Izzy has all of these crazy rules I have to live by? Like bed time at six-thirty or chew seventy-five times before swallowing? What if he wants me to pray or say grace? What if he secretly tries to torture me while Mom's too love-struck to see like in all of the movies? Then again, if Hitomi can survive it here, I should be able to also, right?

Before I can open the door, Hitomi opened it. "Hi, Makoto! Welcome to our home!"

I gulped. I'm going to be sharing a house with the weird girl from school. I can do it. I know I can. "Hi, Hitomi." I finally greeted. "Thank you for taking us."

She smiled. "You'll love what we did to your room! We bought new furniture and everything! Come on! I'll show you!" She grabbed one of my suitcases with one hand and my hand with the other. Mom and Izzy were too busy carrying our other stuff to save me from her tight grip.

Once she opened the door, I instantly felt like part of the family. There were two twin size beds facing opposite from each other with matching nightstands. On one were black and blue stripped covers and sheets. On the other were covers and sheets with pink floral print. We even had our old dressers from what was now Dad's house. "It's beautiful." I said. "I really like it."

"Me too!" Tanemon commented as she jumped from my head and onto the floor. "It looks like those little rooms we saw on TV where all of the big kids sleep! What were they called again?"

"Yeah, this does look like a college dorm room." I kept looking around.

"I knew you would like it!" Hitomi cheered. "Let's help them unload the car, Motimon!" She yelled before running off with her Digimon.

I would've helped but I ended up staying behind. "So this is it." I sat on my new bed. It even had that new bed smell. "This is where we're going to be for the next…" I couldn't even finish the sentence.

"Are you okay, Makoto?"

I looked at Tanemon who was looking back at me with great concern. We're in our new room in our new home. I shouldn't feel so…heavy. But I do. I blinked as I tried to shake off the empty feelings. "I'm fine." I gave her a smile to show that I was telling the truth.

"Oh wow! Look at this room!" Mom cheered.

"Hey, I have an idea." Izzy said. "Hitomi, why don't you show Makoto to the park that's close by? We could do the unpacking for you. What do you say, rammcat?"

"You got it, thimmchip!" He bent down and gave her a kiss on her forehead. Then she grabbed my hand again. "Come on! I'll show you where it is!"

"Oh great." I said sarcastically, but I don't think she got the point.

As we were walking down the street, she wouldn't stop talking about the living experience I was about to encounter (in her words). "You're going to love our neighborhood." She was saying now. "You know, your friends live down the street."

"Yeah, I know." I sighed.

"And ever since you talked to them, they stopped picking on me."

"Yeah, that's great." I tossed in.

"We're almost to the park."

"Great."

"My favorite thing in the park is the swings. That's the place I like to think."

Now, I felt engaged with the conversation. Meaning, I had to ask. "What do you think about?"

She shrugged. "Just stuff."

"Hitomi thinks a lot!" Motimon said. "Sometimes, she likes to close her eyes and cross her arms."

"That's only when I'm thinking really hard." She smiled.

"Interesting." I said. "So what's it like? You know, living with your dad and all?"

"It's really fun! He'll let you do whatever you like unless it's something you're not supposed to."

"Okay, so it's not too different from home." I said more to myself.

"Do you eat together as a family? Some families don't do that."

"Well, I do with Mom." I told her. "But I haven't eaten dinner with my dad for as long as I can remember."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. I haven't eaten with my mom in forever. Now, she doesn't live with us."

I nodded. "That's the way things go."

"Here we are!" She said as soon as my shoes touched mulch. "It's pretty big, right?"

I looked around and saw that the playground was very big. There was a huge slide that curved all the way down with a twisted latter that went up at least ten feet. Plus, there were stories and stories of a childish playhouse behind it. Lastly, I saw the long row of swings. It was a huge playground indeed! "Nice." I commented. It was mostly to make her feel good. I haven't played on a playground since I was…seven.

"Come on! Let's get on the swings!" She grabbed my hand again and pulled me along. Hitomi was so happy. I didn't want to disturb that, so I leaned on the supporting pole next to me with my hands shoved into my pocket and Tanemon on my head. The last thing I needed was someone to see me on the swings. My reputation would be in jeopardy!

"Hey, Makoto!"

Just great. I cocked my head and saw Kim, my crush since the third grade. She was so pretty! She even wore the best clothes because her mom, Sora I think, is a fashion designer, so she could afford anything. But the only thing that made it awkward between us was our height. She has another head on me.

"Hi, Kim." I smiled and waved, but she just past me by with her Yokomon.

"Makoto, hi!" Yuu shouted as him and Masa crossed the playground. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here with Hitomi." I told him. "What are you doing here?"

"I was bored at home so I went next door to Yuu's house." Masa explained. "Then we were both bored so we walked."

"Then we saw you!" Yuu added. "So what do you want to do?"

"Nothing." I told them. "I just got here." Suddenly, we heard a huge skid coming from behind me. Then, Hitomi came into view without her bottom on the swing.

"Hi, Yuu. Hi, Masa." She greeted as Motimon waved.

"Hi, Hitomi." Masa and Yuu said.

"I still can't believe you two are related." Masa said.

"Who's related?"

I gulped as I turned around. And there he was. Dean, one of the other cool guys at school. He was bigger than me and obviously stronger seeing as he's a football player. I just knew he was here for nothing other than trouble. But I had a lie to live up to. As an "older brother", I have to stand up for my "little sister".

"Well, if it isn't Dean." I said with my tough guy attitude.

"Yeah, it is, Makoto." He said. "Are you telling me that you're actually related to…the weird girl?" He asked with full disgust.

At first I just stood there, staring at his muscles. He was a tough guy alright. But I was supposed to be a protective older brother. However, it was easier to stand up to Masa and Yuu because they're my friends. At least, that's what I thought until they bailed on me! I better do the same.

"Come on, Hitomi." This time, I grabbed her hand and started our journey home.

* * *

So what do you think? Leave a review please!


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: How were the first ten chapters? Good? Bad? Review!

A/N (2): So this would've been up on Wednesday but there were technical difficulties, so I'm posting it today. Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 11

I watched as the two kids were leaving for the park hand-in-hand. Meanwhile, I was stuck in this tiny room, unpacking. But it wasn't all bad. Izzy was here. That's all I needed. "So…" I said, trying to start a conversation. "Rammcat?" I asked.

"Oh, that's something Hitomi made up. It's a little thing we do." He chuckled. "I would call her a rammcat which is ironic because rammcats are wild and out of control while Hitomi's very polite and…sane."

"That's cute." I set down my suitcase on my bed and opened it. "So what's a thimmchip?"

He set Makoto's suitcase on his bed and opened it. "Well, I made that one up. Kayo and I just finished fighting and Hitomi caught me mumbling things in the computer room. The one thing that randomly came out was thimmchip. It was a technical error that just kind of stuck." He took out some clothes and started folding.

"T.K. was right. You and your daughter _do_ have your own special language." I started folding my clothes and putting them into the drawers.

"Yeah." He said as he did the same.

I really loved being around Izzy. I feel like I could tell him anything. All of my troubles were gone. In fact, I feel braver around him. "You know, Izzy," I started. "I couldn't get you off of my mind since that coffee date we had."

He dropped a T-shirt on the ground but immediately picked it back up. "Really?" He asked as he carefully placed it into the drawer.

"Yes." I nodded.

"That's funny," he chuckled, "because I couldn't get you off of my mind either."

I turned towards him only to see him staring back at me. "Really?"

"Yeah." He took a deep breath. "Do you think… Do you remember what we said in the coffee place? You asked if we were stupid enough to start this again."

"Yes, I remember." I took my now empty suitcase off of my bed and slid it underneath. Then, I opened one out of many of the cardboard boxes.

"Well, I think we should." He turned me around to face him. "Mimi, I want to start over. Are you willing to give a computer geek like me a second chance?"

I blushed as I looked into his eyes again. "Yes." I answered. "Of course!"

"You will?" He nearly jumped as I nodded. "Yes!" He wrapped his arms around me. Then, he gave me a big smooch on the lips.

I sat down on my bed and pulled his hand so he could do the same. Once we were comfortable, we began to make out again. Clearly, I was engulfed in his arms, but I was also covered with the smell of his cologne, the sound of his heart, and the sound of mine. It was all too familiar to me. I'm so glad we're doing this again.

Then, it was over when we heard the sound of the front door. In unison, we got up and went back to unpacking as if nothing happened. "I'm guessing we're thinking the same thing." I concluded. "If one of our kids finds us, they'll be uneasy."

"Yeah." He agreed. "Hitomi just lost her mom."

"And Makoto might be in shock when he sees me in the arms of another man."

"Or worst. They might not like each other and seeing us together will tear them apart." He said, putting the last T-shirt in the drawer and closing it. "I'm sure Makoto is a very friendly person according to Hitomi. But I don't know if she'll…"

"Really?" I said, taking a clock out of the box and putting it on the nightstand. "She thinks my son's friendly? He only brings two friends over every Friday."

"Yeah," he put the suitcase underneath the bed, "Hitomi keeps telling me how popular he is and how everyone treats her as the 'weird girl' in school except for Makoto. It kind of reminds me of when we were in school."

I nodded thinking of all of the friends I had back then versus all of his enemies. It's true. Everyone picked on Izzy except for me. "Let's just give it a little while." I said, getting back to our kids and our situation. "They'll warm up to each other."

"Right."He smiled.

Suddenly, Makoto burst through the door in an angry manner. Then, he mumbled something about Dean something something and he something something as he pushed past us and plopped onto his bed and crossed his arms. I don't know who Dean is, but he must have something to do with something. "What is it, Makoto?" I asked.

"Nothing, Mom." He said. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" I pressed.

"Yes." He took off his shoes and slid them under the bed. Then, he dug underneath his covers. "I'm never going back to the park."

I shrugged and saw that Izzy was full of concern. "I'm sure he'll be fine." I told him. "It's just kid stuff." I got up and walked out of the room with him. My son will be fine. It only takes a matter of time.

_Tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Tomorrow! Tomorrow! Tomorrow!_

That next morning had to be the best ever! It was my first night that I've ever had anyone popular from school at my house! Now, Makoto lives here! It's awesome! Plus, I'm looking forward to having Mimi around. Maybe it'll be like on TV where she's like the best mom figure for me! I sighed as I thought about it.

_Enough thinking about that!_ I thought. _What am I going to do with Makoto today?_

"Good morning, Makoto!" I cheered, waking him up.

"What is it, Hitomi?" He asked in a rushed tone. "You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"It's almost twelve o'clock. Why are you still asleep?"

He only blinked. "Because I'm human."

"So am I, but I got up at eight o'clock."

"Good for you. I didn't go to sleep until two this morning."

"Well, you got your eight hours. Get up!" I grabbed his arm and pulled.

"Fine! I'm up!" He yelled, shaking his arm loose. "What do you want to do?"

"Can we go to the park again?"

"No!" He yelled almost in mid-sentence as he pulled his covers over his head.

"Why not? You're not scared of that bully are you?"

He threw the covers off of him in a fast motion. "Makoto Tachikawa isn't afraid of anyone!"

"Then, let's go!" I grabbed his hand and pulled him out of bed.

"Okay. Let me change first." He pushed me out of the room. And then I was alone. Dad and Mimi were at work so the house was very quiet as I grabbed a banana out of the refrigerator. A few minutes later, I still didn't peel it. I thought it over and decided to give it to Makoto. "Ready." He said as he came out.

"Good!" I handed him the banana. "Let's go!"

_To the park! To the park! To the park!_

"Okay, so what do you want to do?" I asked him as soon as we were crossing into the sandbox.

"I don't know. Do whatever you want." He stuffed his hands into the pocket of his hoodie and kicked some sand. I guess he just doesn't get that hot. Then again, he was wearing shorts. Who knows?

"Well, maybe we could…" I looked around. He didn't get on the swings yesterday, he probably thought the slides were for babies, and the see-saw was obviously out of the question. "Maybe we could…" Suddenly, I had this idea for this computer mystery I've been solving. It was so obvious! Before it escaped my mind, I grabbed a stick and drew it on the sand. "That's it! This seems about right!"

"What are you doing?" Tanemon asked, causing Makoto to turn around.

"Isn't it obvious?" Motimon asked. "She's cracking the case!"

"What case?" Makoto asked.

"I've been working on it for months." I told him as I continued scribbling. "I've been trying to figure out how to upgrade my computer without buying an installation!"

"Interesting." He said as he watched. "Is it legal?"

"Of course! It's homemade!"

Then trouble came.

I heard big footsteps pounding through the sand. Then a dark shadow cast over us. "Hey, it's the weird girl from school." I looked up and it was Dean and Brittany, the cheerleader. "Look, Dean! Isn't that funny?"

"Yeah, what are you doing with her, Makoto?" Dean asked.

Makoto just rolled his eyes.

"She's so weird! What are you drawing in the sand?" Brittany asked.

Still, I thought it was nice to be friendly. "I was just sketching a simple equation to upgrading my computer. I've been working on it for months."

"Is that so?" Dean asked. "What will you do if it suddenly disappeared?"

"Dean, don't get any ideas." Makoto said.

"Go ahead, Dean. Do it!" Brittany egged him on. "Makoto, you'll probably enjoy this."

"Enjoy what?" I asked.

Then, he did it. Dean kicked my sand equation at me. That idea might never come back to me unless it was fully written out. Now I only had half. I was so upset that I started to cry. My poor equation.

"Hey, what did you do that for?" Motimon shouted.

"Dean, look what you did!" Makoto yelled even louder, as unexpected as it was. I looked up at him and that's when I saw the fire in his eyes. He meant business!

"Come on, Makoto." Dean said. "You would've done the same thing."

"No, I wouldn't have." Then Makoto actually shoved Dean! He was standing up to a bigger kid…for me. "What you did was totally stupid!" He pushed him again.

"Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it?" Dean shoved him back.

That's when Makoto snapped. He kicked Dean in the shin, making him fall to the ground. Then, he grabbed the collar of his shirt. "Let me tell you something. Hitomi is my sister. If you mess with her, you mess with me." He dropped Dean on the ground and kicked sand in his face. "How do you like sand in your face?"

Up until this point, I felt useless when bigger kids bullied me. It didn't happen often, but I would always flee into the bathroom and cry. Now, I have someone there for me. I have a big brother. Who cares if our parents aren't even dating? It's still official to me.

"Sorry, man." Dean said. "I didn't know that was your sister."

"Ew." Brittany said. "The weird girl is your sister? You don't even have the same last name."

"It doesn't matter." He held out his hand towards me and helped me off of the ground as I did my best to wipe sand off of my face. With his arm around my shoulders, he said "Let's go home."

"Aw! That's so sweet!" Brittany cooed as we walked away. "Why can't you be that sweet to me? I'm _your_ sister, you know!"

"I am nice to you!" Dean complained as he walked away.

But as we walked further and further from those creeps, Makoto didn't retract his hand. He still kept his firm grip around my shoulders as if there was more trouble to protect me from. He even kept that angry face on.

"Hey," I said, "are you okay?"

"I'm fine." He said. "How are you?"

"Good." I nodded. "I appreciate you sticking up for me back there."

"Yeah?" I nodded again. "That Dean always fires me up. The worst thing is that he doesn't expect me to do anything to him because I'm short."

"That's not cool." I commented.

"I really don't like that guy." Motimon said. "He made Hitomi cry."

"Yeah! And he called Makoto short!" Tanemon said.

"But I really want to know something." I said before we could continue the bad thoughts of Dean. "Do you really mean what you said?"

"Of course I do." Makoto said, finally releasing his grip. "We live in the same house and you're younger than me. You need a big brother around."

I was speechless as a tear fell down my cheek. "Thank you." I said after a moment of silence. Then, I started crying again.

"Hey," He said with a tender tone and giving me a nice, warm, sincere hug, "why are you crying?"

"I'm happy." I told him. "I finally have someone to depend on when I'm in trouble."

"Yeah." He said with his arms still wrapped around me. Once I calmed down, he let go. "So what do you want to do inside?"

I wiped my face clean before saying "You choose."

"Well, I've always wanted to see you do your computer stuff…"

"Really?"

"I was curious."

If it was possible, my smile grew ten times the normal length. "Okay! Let's go!" I grabbed his hand and ran again. This was definitely the start of something beautiful!

_Talk! Talk! Talk!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Talk! Talk! Talk!_

After work, I headed to Mimi's restaurant. I figured that I should at least give her a ride home. When I got inside, the place was so busy! There were people coming in and out in all kinds of speeds and a huge cacophony of clanking dishes and random conversations. It was around five so this must be the dinner rush. "Izzy!" Mimi shouted, trying to make her way to me.

"Hi, Mimi. Are you ready to go?" I asked.

"Yeah, just let me clear off one last table. Stephanie's late again." She said. Stephanie, from what I heard, was often late. After about five minutes, she was ready. "Someone really needs to talk to her about being late. I have a kid at home." Mimi mumbled.

"Come on. Let's get in the car." I wrapped my arm around her and guided her through the parking lot.

When we got in, I turned the ignition on and changed the radio station to the one we used to listen to when we used to go out: the pop rock station. I forgot what it was called. "Oh, Izzy, you remember our station!" Mimi awed then gave me a kiss on the cheek. "I can't wait until we could do something like this all of the time."

"Me too, but I don't want to spring it on the kids. We should make it casual." I said.

"Casual." Mimi repeated as she looked outside the window. "Izzy, you know what we haven't done in a long time?"

I took my eyes off of the road for a split second to look at her. "What?"

"We should spend a little alone time." She said, leaning on my shoulder. "Go park somewhere."

"I have a better idea." I took the nearest U-turn and drove to the nearest car wash.

I drove onto the track and put the car in park. Like on our third date, I lowered my seat and watched the jets dispense water and soap. Then, Mimi did the same. The thumping of the foam brushes blended in with the thumping of my heart. The swishing of the water and soap made me feel like I was under water. It moved me. In a way, it took over me. I made a bold move by kissing her and digging my hands through her beautiful soft hair. Our passionate kiss lasted forever under the soothing sound of moving water.

"Mimi," I said as soon as the ride was over, "I don't want our relationship to end the way it did."

"It doesn't have to." She kissed me again. "We'll tell our kids and everything will be fine."

"Yeah." I smiled. "Let's just hope that they get along with each other first!"

_Home! Home! Home!_

As soon as I opened the front door, I saw something I thought I would never see so soon. Hitomi and Makoto were carrying boxes out of the guest room and into Hitomi's room. Plus, they would giggle every time they met up with each other. "What's going on?" Mimi finally asked.

"I'm moving out, Mom." Makoto answered.

"He's moving into my room!" Hitomi cheered.

I looked at Mimi who only looked back at me. Then I saw how serious the kids were. "What brought this on?" I asked as I crossed through the living room and sat on the couch.

"Makoto stood up to this rammcat, Dad! He defended me!"

"He did?" Mimi asked, running to her son and gave him a hug. "That's so nice to hear! You're standing up for your friends!"

"Not only that, but he called me his sister!" She cheered and clapped her hands.

"Sister?" Mimi and I asked.

"Yeah." Makoto answered, putting another box into her room. "With her status at school, I figured that she needs an older brother."

"Then we started talking and getting to know each other better." Hitomi grabbed his suitcase and dragged it with her.

"It turns out she's more pathetic then I thought so I decided to move in with her." Makoto put the last box on the floor and dusted off his fingers. "Done."

"Yay!" Hitomi cheered.

"You even have his bed in there?" Mimi asked.

"Yeah, Mom, we both did that." He answered.

Mimi and I shared another glance. "Well, that's great that you're getting along." I said.

"Yes, it really is." Mimi agreed, but I still can tell that she was as confused as I was. The Tachikawas just moved in yesterday and the kids are already joined at the hip! How prodigious is that?

Hitomi held Makoto's hand. "Come on, let me show you something!" And with that, the kids were gone.

The house was quiet for a minute before Mimi decided to speak. "I think this is a sign."

"What?" I asked.

"The kids saying that they're siblings. It's a sign."

"It is?"

She smacked her lips and sat next to me with that smile that told me that she had an idea. "Yes, it is." Mimi crossed her legs and leaned closer to me. "If they believe they're related, then we should be together."

"You think so?"

"I know so. I think now's a good time to tell them."

Of course, I thought so too, but I still managed to push the subject. After I gave her a smile and a "you're right," I took the whole family out to dinner. I told Mimi that I would tell them there, but I chickened out. Why was it so hard to tell them that we're dating? I even had the golden opportunity during the ride home, but I didn't take it. Finally, we were home and the kids were ready to go to bed.

As they were leaving, Mimi smacked my shoulder and pointed to the kids and mouthed the words "tell them." So I did.

"Kids, we want to tell you something." I said just as Hitomi had her hand on the bedroom doorknob.

"What is it, Dad?" She asked.

"Come and sit on the couch." Mimi told them. When they did and they were comfortable with their Digimon, the conversation was finally ready to go.

"First of all, Mimi and I are glad that you two are getting along." I started.

"And you remember how we used to date in the past." Mimi added.

"Well, now that we know that you're comfortable with each other, we thought that it wouldn't be too much of a shock to tell you that…" I looked at Mimi to see if she would finish the sentence, but she didn't. Great. "…Mimi and I decided to continue dating."

Mimi held my hand in a way to say that she was proud of me. Then, I saw that Hitomi was pretty ecstatic about it. Makoto, on the other hand, looked like he could care less. Then again, he was apathetic about a lot of things. I guess this is just one of them.

"Well, what do you think?" Mimi asked. I'm guessing that was more towards Makoto.

"Okay." He only said.

"That's it?" She asked.

"Well, it's just that I saw it coming." Then he gave me a smile. "So are you going to marry my mom?"

I blushed. "Well… you see… I…"

"Makoto, things like that take time." Mimi scolded.

"But I really want Makoto to be my brother." Hitomi said.

"And, believe it or not, it's kind of cool to have a sister." Makoto said.

I looked at Mimi who looked back at me. Then we both looked at the kids. "We'll see." I said.

"Okay!" Hitomi cheered.

"We'll be one big happy family!" Motimon cheered.

"Just like Matt and Sora!" Tanemon cheered.

That was what kind of got me nervous. Would we be like Matt and Sora and be destined to be together forever? Or would it all be a lie like Kayo and me?

* * *

What did you think? Review!


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: What do you think of Makoto and Hitomi? Did I do a good job with their characters? And how about the other kids at their school? Do they seem realistic? Leave a review and tell me what you think.

* * *

Chapter 12

I was unsettled last night. I don't even know why but I was. There was no reason to. Dad's dating Mimi and Makoto, my big brother, is sleeping in my room. But I was still uneasy. It was probably because tomorrow morning was the first day of school. For some reason, that always made me nervous. But that wasn't it…

I was dreaming.

I was dreaming of a bright angel that flew into my room. She was so pretty. In fact, it was Mom. She was flying in through the window with a bright light shining behind her. At first, she wrapped her arms around me, but then Dad Angel came in. The two started fighting and yelling at each other. It was all too familiar. In fact, it was the same fight they had before they separated. But this time, Mom's angel wings fell off and she was a human again. She had on a black dress and her hair was in a bun. Then, she yelled at Dad so loud. It was a high pitch squeal that rumbled the walls and the window. Suddenly, a huge dust storm was headed our way! It came closer and closer! Mom's screaming was tuned out by the roar of the upcoming dirt. Suddenly, the walls crumbled down brick by brick. Then the storm hit.

I sprang upwards in my bed and screamed as loud as I could, hoping that someone would save me.

"Hitomi! Hitomi, what's wrong?" Makoto asked. "Are you okay?"

"What's with the yelling?" Motimon asked.

The sudden silence engulfed the room. I stopped screaming and removed my hands from my ears. I was okay. That is until Dad burst through the door with a baseball bat in position and nearly gave us all heart attacks! "What happened?" He yelled.

"Nothing, Izzy." Makoto said. "Hitomi just had a bad dream. She'll be fine."

Dad lowered his arms and sighed. "Okay." He smiled. "Let's try to get back to bed."

Once he was gone, I looked over at Makoto who was looking at me with much concern. "What happened?" He asked, laying his head back down on his pillow.

"It was just what you said." I told him. "It was just a bad dream."

"Come on." He smiled. "I'm sure it was really scary if you had to scream like that."

"It was. I never bizzled out like that in a long time!"

"Bizzled out?"

"It means to freak out." Motimon explained, lying back down. "Hitomi made it up."

He nodded and looked at the ceiling. "So are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?"

"Yeah, Hitomi, we're here for you."

"No," I answered, "I'm just going to try to go back to sleep."

"Are you sure?" He pressed, turning towards me. "I'm your big brother. I'm sure you can tell me."

"And I'm your Digimon! You can definitely tell me!"

I turned towards him and drew a deep breath. "It was my parents." I said with a few tears falling down. "They were fighting again."

"Are you crying?" He asked.

I sat up and nodded, wiping my tears. But they just kept on falling. I hated to see Mom and Dad yell at each other. That's probably why they sent me to my room all of the time. But that never stopped me from being able to hear them.

Makoto got out of his bed and sat next to me. Then he pulled me into his arms. "It's okay." He said. "I'm here."

"Didn't it hurt to see your parents fight?" I asked him.

He let go and looked at me. "Of course it did." He sighed. "But that's how it goes. I couldn't do anything about it. Plus, it might be for the best."

"Oh really?"

"Really?" Motimon and Tanemon asked, clearly confused.

"Yeah," he wrapped his arm around my shoulders and squeezed them, "I never would've had a little sister."

"Technically you still can, but I get what you're saying." I smiled. "And I would've never had a big brother." I gave him a hug and snuggled deeper into my covers. "Okay, I'm going to try to get more sleep."

"Okay, good." Makoto went back to his bed and pulled the covers over his shoulders. "We don't want to fall asleep during History!"

"Right!" Now, I could rest in peace knowing that I have my brother and Digimon here to protect me.

_Time for school! Time for school! Time for school!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Time for school! Time for school! Time for school!_

"Hi, Makoto!"

I looked up from my desk and saw Kim with her Yokomon. I've been asleep during History again. This time, I couldn't tell if it was because of my boring new teacher, the subject itself, or Hitomi waking me up last night. Either way, I'm now wiping drool off of my cheek and notebook. Gross. "Hi, Kim."

"There's word going around school that you're related to the weird girl. That has to suck." She put Yokomon next to Tanemon. The two Digimon smiled at each other.

"It's not too bad." I told her. "I don't think she's weird. Do you?"

She shrugged. "I know we all have our weird points – with me and my boyish haircut and all and you and your year-round hoodie – but Hitomi is just…" She trailed off.

I rolled my eyes. "…different?" I finished for her. "Right."

"Well, yeah." She sat down at the desk behind me. "She spends like eighty percent of her time in the computer lab. Plus, she makes up words all of the time and does these weird drawings. Come on! How do you _not_ think that's weird?" She playfully smacked my shoulder.

"I just don't. I don't see a reason to make fun of her." I told her.

"Do you say that because you're her brother?"

I shook my head. "As strange as it may seem, I never did. She never bothered me, harmed me, or anything." I pushed some hair out of my face. "Hitomi likes to do her thing. Who am I to get in her way?"

Kim smiled. It was the first time I got her to do that! Hopefully, she's not smiling because I said something stupid. "That's really sincere of you, Makoto." She said. "I always try to be a good big sister, but I think I'm lacking that protectiveness you have."

"You do?" I asked. "But you seem so tough. I mean, in a cool way."

"You really think so?" I nodded. "That's really nice of you to say that." She shifted her position in her chair then asked "So what's it like to live with her?"

I rolled my eyes again. I've been asked that question so many times that day, it's lost all meaning. Therefore, I answer this question with another obvious question. "What's it like living with your brother?"

Kim looked down at Yokomon who was having a conversation of her own with Tanemon. "I don't know. It's something."

"Yeah." I nodded. "That's how it is. Something."

She scoffed. "I'm sure living with Hitomi is more than something!" She let out a small laugh. "Right?"

I thought about that for a second. At first, I was angry, but in a way… "You're right. It _is_ more than something. It's actually really fun." I looked down at Tanemon who had a smile as big as mine. "Right, Tanemon?"

"Right!" She cheered.

She looked at Tanemon and back to me. "Really?"

"Yeah! I don't even remember the last time I was bored. You know, if you want, you're welcome to come over and see for yourself."

She smiled. "Okay. Who's house are you in? Yours or hers?"

"Hers." I told her.

"Cool! And I'm sorry about calling your sister weird. If she's as cool as you say she is then why am I listening to all of the other losers at this school?"

I shook my head. "They're probably hiding something weirder so they take it out on Hitomi."

"Right." She nodded seconds before the bell rang. "Well, I'll see you at lunch." She picked up Yokomon and her backpack. She slung the backpack over her shoulder and began to walk off.

"Right." I waved from where I was. "Bye."

But before that, I had Science with Yuu and Masa. For some odd reason, it's been that way for the past four years. Science with Yuu and Masa. When I got there, the two were already sitting in their usual spots: Yuu sitting in the top left corner of the room and Masa sitting behind him. At the time, Yuu was rolling his eyes and crossing his arms as Masa blew his nose when I sat next to Yuu.

"Hi." I greeted, taking Tanemon off of my head and onto my desk.

"Hi." They both greeted back.

"Man, you're lucky. I wish I had a Digimon." Yuu said.

"Then, why don't you just get one and be quiet already?" Masa asked in an irritated tone. Then to me he said "He's been complaining about it for like two weeks." He sneezed before saying "I'm glad I don't live with him or I'll have to hear it twenty-four/seven!"

"Don't you want one?" Yuu asked Masa.

He rolled his eyes. "Knowing me, I'd be allergic to one."

"Then get a hypoallergenic one! That way we'll all be happy!"

"I'm not really interested." He started drumming his fingers against the desk. It was a habit I seemed to be surrounded with now. Masa does it, Hitomi does it, and Izzy does it. I don't have a problem with it now, but I know that it's going to get on my last nerve one day.

"Why not? Everyone has one." Yuu argued.

"That's just it! _Everyone_ has one! It's so overrated. It's like owning a dog."

"But better." Tanemon said. "We don't rip up the furniture!"

"Right!" I agreed.

"What are you talking about?" I jumped when I heard her voice in my ear. It was Hitomi, taking the seat behind me.

"We're talking about how cool it would be to have a Digimon." Yuu explained. Ever since I told them about Hitomi, Yuu and Masa have been really friendly towards her. Whenever they invite me to do something, they also include Hitomi. "Masa said that he doesn't want one."

He shrugged. "I just think that I can survive without one. I don't absolutely need one."

"Well, no one absolutely needs flat screen TVs but everyone gets them anyway." Hitomi said. She just kills when it comes to debates! "We all want to live our lives a little better so we get Digimon. They can help around the house, provide a shoulder to cry on, and they're fun to play with."

"I guess you're right." He said before another sneeze. "I hate having allergies." That's typical Masa for you!

"Well…" Hitomi was about to say but stopped when we all heard whispering.

I turned around and Dawn, the head cheerleader with the Salamon, Brittany with her DemiVeemon, and the redheaded cheerleader with her Yokomon were whispering in a huddle not too far from us. "Can we help you?" I asked.

The girls looked at me and back at each other. Dawn pushed the redhead's shoulder towards us. "Go for it, Laney." She said.

"No, you do it, Dawn!" She shifted back into the huddle.

"Laney, do it!" Dawn pushed her back.

She stomped her foot, "Fine," then stomped her way over here. "Hi, Makoto."

"Hi, Laney." I greeted with my cool guy smile.

Laney looked back at her cheerleader friends who just frowned. Then, she turned back to me. "Are we still going to have lunch at the cool table?"

Crap. I just remembered the "cool" table I sit at every day. That was the table where I invited all of the cool kids to sit. What am I going to do now that Hitomi's with me? What do I do? If Hitomi sits with me, everyone will leave and goodbye popularity. Maybe she'll skip again and go to the computer lab.

"I'll tell you what, Laney," I said, making her gasp and smile in excitement, "meet me at the table and I'll be there."

"Really?" Dawn pushed Laney aside. "You will?" I nodded. "Then, can I sit next to you?"

"We'll see at lunch time."

Dawn gave Laney a look and then gestured towards me. Laney sighed before asking "Are only cool people going to be at the cool table?" As if on cue, all three cheerleaders looked at Hitomi. She sighed in response and turned around.

I patted her knee as inconspicuous as possible while I kept my eyes on the cheerleaders. "Trust me, Dawn, Laney, and Brittany, I invite only the kids on my cool list."

"Really?" All three girls asked.

"Cool!" Brittany commented.

"See you there." I shooed them off.

"Well, it looks like we're going to the computer lab." Hitomi told Motimon.

"Oh, yay." He said sarcastically.

"Why?" I asked.

"Oh, don't worry about us, Makoto. We won't eat at your table and ruin your popularity. We'll just go to the computer lab."

"No, you don't have to. I said that only the kids on _my_ cool list are invited. That's you too."

"Really?" He face instantly lit up.

"Yeah, and if the other kids have a problem with that, I'll ask them to leave. If they don't, _we'll_ leave. Right, Tanemon?"

"Right!" She cheered.

"You should be able to get in." Yuu said, cleaning his glasses. "If we got in…" He was interrupted by another sneeze from Masa. "…you should definitely get in."

"Okay."

When the bell rang for lunch, Yuu, Masa, Hitomi, and I were the first people to sit down. "So, Hitomi, what do you think?" I asked her. "You're at the cool table now."

She looked around and back at me. "Okay, I guess. Nothing really happened yet."

"Just wait until they get here." Masa said. "It's pretty cool."

"If you say so…" She smiled.

Right on cue came the three cheerleaders. "…so I know what I'm talking about." Brittany was saying as she put down her lunch tray and DemiVeemon down. "Why do you think she does that? I mean, she knows that bothers me!"

"Oh, she's just jealous." DemiVeemon said.

"Shut up! You're going to get me in trouble!" She stuffed a French fry into his mouth.

"But seriously," Dawn sat next to me with nothing but her Salamon and a salad, "you need to talk to her. Serious drama damages the squad."

"Yes, but it also makes it more interesting." Laney said.

"Laney, this is why _I'm_ the head cheerleader. You'll run this squad down bit by bit."

"That's where you're wrong. I'm not the head cheerleader because I don't want to deal with the stress. I don't even know what the head cheerleader even does."

"Speaking of cheerleaders, where are the football players?" Brittany asked, scanning the cafeteria.

"Josh and Satoshi should be coming soon." Dawn told her as she mimicked Brittany's action. "Of course, Dean's coming too."

I looked back at Hitomi who was looking back at me. This was not going to end well.

"Hi, ladies." Dean said as soon as he and his other football friends, Josh and Satoshi, arrived. He didn't even acknowledge us. But, to be honest, I wasn't acknowledging him either. I was too busy looking at Josh. Where have I seen him before?

"Isn't that Kari's son?" Hitomi asked me. I took another look at him. Hitomi hit the nail on the head! That _was_ him. But why would he hang around with – ew – Dean? I guess Josh wasn't all bad, seeing as he waved at us before sitting between Laney and Dean.

"Hey, who are you waving at?" Dean asked him.

"Makoto and Hitomi. Our parents are friends. You know, the original DigiDestined." He explained.

"Did you hear the news? The cool kid and the weird girl are related."

"They are?" Josh asked as if this were impossible. "You're kidding."

"No, I'm not." He said. "Makoto said it himself. Right, Brittany?"

Brittany, who just got her can of soda open, looked at me and back at him. Then, she took a sip as if that were to speak for itself.

"Ew." Laney commented. "They're related?"

"They're also right here." I said, earning their full attention. "But that shouldn't change anything. I'm still the cool guy you thought was so cool last year."

"But why would you stoop so low?" Dawn asked. "I mean, having those two…" she pointed to Yuu and Masa "…is one thing, but having to be related to her…" she pointed to Hitomi "…is a different thing entirely."

"Unless you're taking pity on her." Brittany finally said. "I think we all should pity her. I mean, can _you_ imagine a life without anyone to text?"

"Brittany, she doesn't even have a cell phone." Laney said. "And besides, she doesn't have a disease or anything, so why pity her?"

Hitomi sighed. "Come on, Motimon." She whispered. "Let's go to the lab."

I grabbed her wrist before she could get up. "Don't." I told her. Then, I stood up. "Hey, everyone! Hitomi Izumi is right here!" I exclaimed over the whole table. "So can you stop talking like she's not here?"

"Oh, sure." Satoshi said. "No problem, Man."

Dawn, on the other hand, sighed. "He's always standing up for her. Why does he do that?" She asked her cheerleader friends.

"Because they're siblings." Brittany answered. "He _has_ to. It's, like, his duty."

"No, I do it because I'm just that cool." I told them. "I mean, truly cool people are nice to non-cool people." Can you tell that I'm making this up?

"But why?" Laney asked.

"Because it's cool." Josh said. "Didn't you hear him? I mean, why would one of the cool kids lie to us?"

Dean scoffed. "He hangs out with the weirdest girl in school. He's not cool."

"Hey, Dean!" I yelled, quieting the whole cafeteria. "Remember what I said to you at the park when I beat you down?" Everyone gasped. "I told you that if you mess with Hitomi, you mess with me. You mess with the bull, you get the horns. Do you understand me?"

"Oh yeah?" Dean raised his voice and stood up. "And what is a little pipsqueak like you going to do about it?" He walked around the whole table and stuck his mean mug in my face.

"_FIGHT!" _The whole cafeteria screamed. "_FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!_"

"You heard them." Dean said. "They want a fight. Let's give it to them."

I shook my head. "No, Dean. I'm not fighting you." I was smart enough to know that he was bigger than me _and_ he's on the football team. What did _I_ do after school? Nothing. I just attend P.E. class.

"Why not? Are you scared?" He pushed me. "Huh? You scared?" He pushed me again. "What are you going to do, Makoto?"

However, I couldn't just stand there. I'm not just going to let me push him around. "Stop it!" I yelled, pushing him back.

"Make me, punk!" He pushed me again and I let him have it!

I punched him straight in the gut. This only angered him more, causing him to hit me in the jaw. I fell to the ground, hitting a chair on the way. "Ow…" I complained, getting up.

"Makoto, stay down!" Hitomi told me. Then, to Dean she said "Hey, leave him alone!"

But Dean didn't listen. Instead, he picked me up by the collar and hit me again. I was only about a foot off of the ground when I gripped his arms, piercing the skin with my fingernails, and started kicking, hoping to land a hit somewhere, anywhere. When I did, I hit him in the knee, making him drop me on another chair.

"Come on, guys! Cut it out!" Josh screamed.

When Dean turned around to hear what he was saying, I took my window of opportunity and tackled him, making him hit a few chairs on the way down. Then, I punched him in the jaw! It was pretty cool! Then, Dean grabbed me and threw me into the table. Just in time for the principal to come in.

"What's going on here?" She asked with a stern voice. Rumor has it that she used to be a boys' football coach. Yeah, she was _that_ tough. "Well?"

I looked over at Dean, who couldn't stop staring at our huge principal. I, on the other hand, was too much in pain from the jaw punch to answer. "He bizzled out!" Hitomi told her, pointing to Dean.

"Yeah, he just started beating up our friend out of nowhere!" Yuu said.

"But Makoto hit back!" Satoshi said. "That means he gets in trouble too!"

"I want this whole table in my office now!" The principal shouted before turning and walking away.

"Well, you heard him. I mean, her." Laney said. "Boys, get the table."

"Shut up, Laney." Dawn smacked her. "I can't believe we're all going to the office."

"It could be worst. We could get expelled." Brittany said. All three cheerleaders took their Digimon and headed out the door with Satoshi, Josh, and Dean following.

It took a while for me to get up. That was only because I was in pain. Give me a minute. "Makoto, are you okay?" I opened my eyes and saw Hitomi looking at me with such concern in those black eyes of hers. Until now, I've never seen her eye color. I always assumed that they were a darker brown than mine. But they were black and beautiful.

Hitomi kneeled down and tried to lift me up. After she helped me on my feet, I felt the pain in my jaw and a peculiar taste in my mouth. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"I really appreciate what you're doing for me." She sighed. "But I don't want you to go through so much to where you get in trouble."

"But I have to." I told her. "If I don't stand up for you, no one will."

Hitomi smiled and gave me a hug. "I love you." She said. "You're the best big brother a girl can ever have."

And from then on, I felt loved. I felt like I really made a difference in someone's life. After a cough and a few droplets of blood on my hand, I finally said "I love you too."

* * *

So what did you think of the fight scene and all of the other minor characters? Who was your favorite? Leave a review please!


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: I hope you like it!

* * *

Chapter 13

To propose or not to propose. That was the question. When will be the perfect time? It definitely wouldn't be now, seeing as she was scolding Makoto for what happened at school. He had just been suspended and Hitomi refuses to go to school without him. Just great. That's definitely what I needed.

I figured that I would tell her sometime after work the next day, but I didn't get the chance. She took a separate car so she didn't need me to drive her home. Then, she said that she was going to work late. Those words alone were enough to give me a mini heart attack. That's what Kayo said all of the time. "I'm working late."

But this was different. I trusted Mimi. Then again, I trusted Kayo. They were both beautiful women. Of course they'd probably jump at the chance to be with a more handsome guy. One who's an athlete or a rock star. Not me.

"Where's Mom?" Makoto asked one night as I was making dinner.

I sighed. "She's working late again."

Unlike Makoto's usual blasé look, he was actually shocked like I told her that she got into a car accident. "What do you mean?" He asked. "What do you mean by 'working late'? Is she coming back?"

I turned around to get a good look at his expression. In fact, it was one of the saddest faces I've ever seen. His brown eyes were widened and glossed over as if tears were about to fall and his mouth hung open. "Don't worry, Makoto. She's coming back."

"Last time my dad worked late," he stood up, "he ended up not working at all. He was with another woman."

"Makoto, we have to have trust in her. I've known her for thirty years. There's no way she'll do what Norio's done. Or Kayo. She's too sincere to do that. Plus, she loves you too much."

"Right." He sighed. "I hope."

I watched as he walked away into his room. If only I knew for sure that I was right. It's been like this for over a week. I decided to bring it up that Saturday after she moved in to the master bedroom. "Mimi, I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Sure, Izzy, what is it?" She asked looking as bright and as cheerful as when we first started dating. She's so beautiful.

"Well, it's about how much you've been working lately."

"It's not a problem is it?" She lied down next to me.

"No, of course not." I lied. "It's just that…" I sighed before continuing. "Makoto has been thinking of the worst."

"The worst being…?"

"The worst being that you're doing to me what Norio's done to you."

She gasped. "No," she shook her head in awe, "why would he think that?"

"It's because of you working late. I know you wouldn't do that, but I just wanted to make sure."

"Of course, I'm not doing anything I'm not supposed to be doing." She gave me a kiss. "Don't you remember why I started dating you in the first place? Why would I give that up?"

I shrugged. "Why did you start dating me?"

"Because," she laughed, "I love you for you. I don't need a flashy career like a rock star or an athlete or a lawyer. You're different from them."

I sighed. "Okay."

"I mean it."

"I know."

"But you still have doubts."

"I didn't say that."

"You didn't have to." She got off of the bed and headed towards the dresser. "Just trust me. There's a surprise I've been working on."

"A surprise?" She nodded before grabbing a T-shirt of mine out of the drawer. "What kind of surprise."

"You know," she slipped on the T-shirt and a pair of pajama shorts, "just a surprise."

"Oh." I said as I crawled under the covers. "So when can I expect this surprise?"

"You can expect it in a week." She crawled in next to me and turned off the lamp that lived on the nightstand.

"A week?"

"That's right. I think you're going to love it."

"Okay." I tried to give her a kiss on the cheek but it was dark, so I might've missed, kissing her nose.

"Izzy," she said, "don't ever think I will treat you the same way Kayo did. I don't know anyone who can take me away from you."

"Don't just tell me. Tell Makoto. He's really worried." I told her. "He thinks that you left him here."

She took in a breath. "He does?" There was a long pause before she said "great."

"But don't worry. Once Makoto sees your surprise, he'll understand."

_Meanwhile! Meanwhile! Meanwhile!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Meanwhile! Meanwhile! Meanwhile!_

I couldn't sleep knowing Mom could come in at any hour of the night. Every night for a while, I stayed up to wait for her. I was scared. I didn't know what was going on. It was just like before. Dad did it and now Mom might do the same. But I wasn't alone this time. Tanemon was with me.

"So what do you think is going on?" I asked her.

"She probably had to work late because her boss wanted her to." She answered. "It's a simple explanation. Now, get some sleep."

"I can't. What if she decides to leave me here? Or worst. What if we move again?"

"Moving away is worst than your mom leaving you?"

I sighed. "You're right. I didn't think that through. I just…" I almost choked on the lump that formed in my throat. Because it was the middle of the night and Motimon and Hitomi were asleep right across from me, I had to be quiet. "I just really hate moving. I hate it. I'm afraid of it."

"You are?" Tanemon whispered even quieter than we already were.

"Yes." I got up from my lying position and sat with my back on the wall. I took a few deep breaths before speaking again. "I never know what's going to happen. I never know if everything's going to be okay." I started choking on a few tears. "How do I know if we're able to survive for another year? You heard what Mom said, Tanemon. We couldn't afford to rent our house. If we leave, where would we go?" From this point, my eyes were like broken dams with water just spewing out. "I don't want to be afraid anymore. I don't want to move."

"Makoto, everything's going to be okay. Mom probably didn't do anything she wasn't supposed to. You're probably over reacting to nothing." Tanemon said. "Cheer up, Makoto. Things are fine." She jumped into my lap and hoped that I would stop crying, but I couldn't. I felt like an idiot. "Don't be sad, Makoto. You must be tired. Let's just go to sleep."

I wiped the remainder of my tears and squeezed my Digimon tight. "I'll try." I told her before laying back down. But it was easier said than done. For the past hour or so, I've been staring around the room, looking at Hitomi and Motimon to Tanemon to the crack in the wall. But eventually, I fell asleep.

_Next Monday! Next Monday! Next Monday!_

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

_Next Monday! Next Monday! Next Monday!_

"What time did Mom come home last night?" Makoto asked me that next Monday morning. It was an unusual question but you can't blame him for asking.

"Around nine." I answered.

"What can she possibly be doing for four hours?" He sat at the table and poured him some cereal.

I sat across from him and poured myself a bowl. "I don't know." I said. "She told me that she's been working on a surprise."

"A surprise?" He asked as if I told him that she was buying an elephant. "What kind of surprise?"

I shrugged. "Just a surprise."

We both took a bite during the long pause. His eyes were glued to the back of the box while I looked through the mail. "Are you going to marry her?" He asked, making me nearly choke.

"What?"

"Are you going to marry her?"

"Do you want me to marry her?"

"Well," he took another bite before answering, "yeah."

"You do?"

He nodded, chomping on his cereal. "I like you. You're cool."

I smiled. "You really think so? What brought this on?"

He shrugged before swallowing. "You took us out to dinner, you bought me stuff, you take me to school," he moved the box so that I can see his face, "and I haven't seen Mom this happy in a very long time if ever."

"You don't say."

"I know it's bizarre but it's true. You're much better than Dad. You even spend more time with us. And Hitomi's a good sister."

And speaking of Hitomi, she and Motimon entered the room. "Morning, rammcat." I greeted.

"Good morning, thimmchip." She grabbed a banana out of the fridge and sat next to us.

"Hitomi, what do you think of Mimi?"

"I like her!" She said. "Look what she did to my nails!"

I looked closely at her little fingernails that were painted pink and had hearts all over them. "Wow!" I commented. "I didn't know she could do that."

"Yeah, and she took me shopping! I wanted to see the computer stuff, but she insisted that I look at some new clothes instead."

"She doesn't like the dress I picked out for you?" I asked, looking at her green dress that was over a long-sleeved paler green shirt.

"I guess not. But _I_ like it!" She peeled the banana and was about to eat it until another question popped into her mind. "What made you ask if I liked her?"

"Because your dad's going to marry my mom." Makoto answered.

"Wait a minute! I didn't say that!"

"Well, why not?" Hitomi asked before taking a bite. It was a good question. "I mean, you both have been dating for a long time accumulating from when you were teenagers and now. It's basically common sense that you're at your happiest with her."

"You think?"

"I haven't seen you this happy since I was born."

"You remember that?" Makoto nearly shouted.

"Yeah, don't you?" She asked him.

He shook his head and went back to the back of the cereal box. "People at school are right. You _are_ weird."

She giggled after smacking him in the face with the banana peel. "You know you still love me anyways."

Lately, the two have been acting like real siblings. They were only kids, but they raised a good argument. What was I waiting for? In a tradition, the man is the one to propose. That means I can't wait around any longer! I have to make my move!

"Excuse me, kids." I said. "I have to make a phone call."

"Okay." The two said as I got up and left the room.

"Hello, Tai? It's Izzy." I called.

"Hi, Izzy! What's up?" His voice was clear, but there was a lot of noise going on in the background. I kind of wondered what was going on, but I was too excited to tell him what I needed to tell him.

"I'm going to propose to Mimi!"

He gasped. "You are? That's great! I didn't even know you two were dating." There was a crash in the background followed by a high-pitched scream. "Yukio, put that down right now!" He yelled.

"Well, she's been living here for about five months. What did you think was going to happen?"

"You're right." He laughed. "Sorry about that." Then, offline, he yelled "Yukio, take Koromon outside! You know better than to get in my desk!"

"Is everything okay over there?" I asked.

"Yeah, it's just kid stuff." Then he yelled "Agumon, get Yukio!" Then to me he said "Five-year-olds can be a handful especially if _someone_ gives them chocolate before breakfast!"

"I'm sorry, Tai! I didn't know they'd go this crazy!" Agumon said loud enough for me to hear.

I laughed. "Well, anyway, I just wanted some advice."

"Okay, on what?"

"Well, on TV, you'd see a guy proposing to a girl with this whole romantic scene. I want to do something that she will remember for the rest of her life."

"Well, what did you do when you proposed to Kayo?"

"I took her to the park bench that we always go to."

"Looks like you can't do the bench thing. What else did you have in mind?"

"I don't know. There _is_ the carwash."

"The carwash?"

"Yeah, have you ever kissed under the carwash?"

"No."

"Then again, I don't think she would hear me under all of the brushes and jets. What else can I do?"

"Hmm…" He thought. "I don't know. I'll tell you what, let's go find a good ring and then inspiration might come to you."

"Great idea! Would you come with me?"

"Sure! Just let me get my little one ready for school." He hung up the phone. I'm guessing he was in a hurry.

_Later! Later! Later!_

It was after three when I came home from picking up the kids. And the ring was in my pocket. But I had no inspiration towards a nice presentation. I just hoped that it would come to me soon. Interrupting my thinking process was the phone. "Hello?"

"Izzy, it's me!" Mimi greeted. "Turn on the TV to Mr. Ishida's channel! Hurry!"

"Why? What is it?"

"It's the surprise I wanted to show you! Get the kids! Hurry!"

"Okay but…"

"Izzy, I have to go. Just get the kids and hurry!" She hung up the phone.

"Kids, get out here!" I shouted as I turned on the TV.

"Are we in trouble?" Makoto asked.

"No. Mimi has a surprise for us."

All three of us sat on the couch and paid close attention to what was on the screen. I didn't get it. All there was on it was a sign that said "EAT AND TREAT!" on it. Then, it zoomed out and turned to a very familiar face: Mimi's!

"Whoa! It's Mom!" Makoto yelled.

"She's on TV!" Hitomi shouted.

"Hi! I'm Mimi!" She waved to the audience.

"And I'm Palmon!" The camera flashed over to Palmon who was waving as well.

"Welcome to our first episode of our new show 'Eat and Treat' where you'll get the best food and the latest in pop culture! Today, we're going to make Miso-Glazed Sea Bass with Asparagus! But first, I want to make a shout out to my son, Makoto, my boyfriend, Izzy, and his daughter, Hitomi." She waved again. "Hi!"

"And now let's get started!" Palmon cheered.

But before the rest of the program could get started, I got endless phone calls from my parents and friends telling us how excited they were. But what was really significant was what Matt told me. "You're a lucky man." It was the kind of thing you would hear at a wedding.

That's when it hit me.

The very next day, I snuck the kids into the audience where they sat in the front row. I gave Palmon a whispered message and hid backstage. Then, I waited and enjoyed the show.

"Welcome back to 'Eat and Treat'! I'm Mimi…"

"And I'm Palmon!"

"And there you have it! We just finished today's recipe: Mahi-Mahi with Charred Onions. Doesn't that look good?" The audience then erupted with applause as she presented the dish. "Okay, that's it for today's show! I hope you…"

"Wait a minute, Mimi." Palmon said. I was watching eagerly for my signal when I felt someone touch my shoulder, making me jump fifty feet in the air. I turned around and saw that it was Tai with Matt behind him.

"Go for it." Tai said as he and Matt gave me a thumbs-up. I did the same and waited for my signal.

"Before we wrap up the show," Palmon was saying now, "I would like to introduce a very special guest on our show."

"But Palmon, we don't have any special guests." Mimi said.

"Yes, we do! This guest is a _very_ special guest." Then to the audience, she said "This guest has known Mimi for thirty years and they've dated for about five. Please give a warm welcome to Izzy Izumi!"

_I'm doing this for love,_ I thought over and over again. _I'm doing this for love. I'm doing this for love_. When I finally gathered up the courage, I stepped onto the stage.

"Izzy? Palmon, what's going on?" Mimi asked.

"Mimi, I wanted to surprise you the way you surprise me with your beautiful face on TV. I also want to show the world how much I love you." I bent down on one knee. I could feel the sweat building up in my pores as I took the ring out of my pocket. "Mimi Tachikawa, will you marry me?"

The audience suddenly exploded with "oohs" and "aws" and a massive amount of applause. It was the kind of recognition I thought I would never get even if I was one of the original DigiDestined!

Mimi looked at the audience and to our kids. "Do it, Mom!" Makoto shouted.

"Say yes!" Hitomi shouted.

"Oh my!" She took the ring out of my hand and put it on her finger. "Zoom in to this, camera guy!" Then to the audience, she said "I'm going to marry this guy!"

I got up to give her a huge hug but Hitomi's voice stopped me. "Yay, Dad!" She and Makoto climbed up onstage with their Digimon. It was like a dream of some kind.

"Hey, Dad!" Makoto cheered.

"Well, that's it for today's show!" Mimi said into her microphone. "Join us tomorrow for our next recipe and log onto WWW dot eat-n-treat dot com for other recipes, more news, and just to send me your request. I'm Mimi…"

"And I'm Palmon!"

"And this is my new loving family! Thank you for watching!"

And that was that. Let a milestone be set.

* * *

So how was it? Was it sweet? Was it sorry? Was it funny? REVIEW! please :)


	14. Epilogue

Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon

A/N: Try to keep up! Everyone has a say in this dramatic conclusion!

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Chapter 14

Epilogue

Here I am, walking down the aisle for the first time. My beautiful son stood there with the wedding bands and my beautiful daughter stood there with a handful of flower pedals, sprinkling them onto the floor. My beautiful husband was standing there in front of me.

The walk seemed longer than I thought, seeing as I was flashing back to my whole adventure. After meeting Norio to the first time, after giving birth to Makoto, after all of the moving, I was here. Maybe there was a lesson here to be learned: the thing that you're destined for could be staring you in the face this whole time. It could be right under your nose and you wouldn't know until it just slaps you. And that was this moment right here.

Now, I've been a married woman for almost a year. The show is doing a lot nicer since Palmon has gotten some new guest stars including the best novelist of all time, T.K.! But when I'm off set, I've started a daily routine of dropping the kids off at school, getting some exercise, do some house work, catch up on my TV, get the kids, and enjoy my husband's company.

What more can I possibly ask for?

Oh yeah! I know! I decided to give Norio a call while I waited in the car in the front of the kids' middle school. I wanted to rub in his face how successful my life has been without him! "Hi Norio!" I greeted. "How are you?"

"Mimi? Is that you? How are you?" He asked, actually happy to hear from me.

"I asked you first."

"Well, I'm pretty stressed taking on all of these cases."

"Oh, isn't that…something." I said.

"So how are you? What have you been up to for the past three years? How's Makoto?"

"He's fine. I'm fine." I said. "We're all doing fine."

"That's nice to hear."

"But Norio," I couldn't help but to smile, "I really called to tell you what I've been up to since we split."

"Mimi, come move back in with me."

I drew in a breath. "What did you just say?"

"Mimi, I've been a fool to let a pretty lady like you walk out and with our only son."

"Norio, I…" Before I could say anything, the kids and their Digimon came into the car. "Hi, kids! How was school?" I asked them.

"Fun, Mom!" Hitomi answered.

"That's nice."

"Who's that?" Norio asked.

"Oh, that was my daughter." I answered.

"Daughter?"

"Yes."

"Who's that?" Makoto asked.

"Oh, it's just Norio." I said as if it were no big deal. It really wasn't. Makoto was mature enough to realize the pain I was in and knew how much of a jerk he was.

"Oh, okay." He answered. Ever since I married Izzy, Makoto calls him Dad because he's a better dad than Norio. Plus, he started calling Norio by his first name and, frankly, he stopped caring about him.

"Can I speak to Makoto?" Norio asked.

"Hold on, let me ask him." I turned around to face him. "Do you want to speak to him?"

He shook his head. " Norio? Naw, I'm cool."

"Sorry." I told him. "He doesn't want to talk to you. Anyway, I have to get back to my husband so he can watch the kids before I go to the studio. I have a show to star on!"

"Oh really?"

"Yeah! Anyway I have to go." I hung up before he could say anything. That should show him!

Oh, my last name you ask?

I am Mimi Izumi-Tachikawa.

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

Well, here I am. It's been about a year since I've married Mimi. Best decision I've ever made! As for the kids, I've never seen a sibling relationship as strong as theirs. It's actually really prodigious! I'm always happy to see them happy when I get home from work and then to tune in to my favorite TV show: "Eat and Treat."

But one thing didn't seem right.

I had to check on how Kayo was doing. It's not in me to just leave a person and push them out of my life for good. So I gave her a call. After a few months of calling and not getting an answer, she called me.

"Izzy? This is a surprise." She said as if I called her.

"Yes, it is." I commented. "I just wanted to see what was going on. How's life been for you and Norio over the past year?"

She sighed. "It could be better. Do you think you can forgive me for what I did?"

"I forgive you." I said.

"Will you take me back?"

My heart skipped a beat when I heard the question. Why would she want me to take her back? Most importantly, what makes her think I'll say yes? That's when the answer kind of came up on its own. "Hey, Dad!" Makoto called. "Come on! You're going to miss Mom on TV!"

"Who's that?" Kayo asked.

"That was my son." I answered.

"And his mom's on TV?"

"Yeah." I said. "She stars in the new cooking show, 'Eat and Treat', you should really watch it some time. It's great!"

"But that's Mimi…"

"Yeah." I said, looking at the TV screen. "She's my wife."

"You're married?" She asked, sounding hurt and like she was about to cry.

"Aren't you?" There was a long pause and suddenly…

She hung up.

I only shrugged this off and sat between my kids. Life is good.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I got my name changed!

I am Koushiro "Izzy" Izumi-Tachikawa.

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

Here I am! I've arrived in middle school which is the place that will make or break me. That means that I'm going to have to focus on my grades to get into a good high school and I have to make the best out of this year. By that, I mean that I have to work hard to keep my popularity!

Last year, defending Hitomi set a lot of controversy. They didn't know whether or not I was cool for standing up for the little guy (the geek's point of view) or that I was turning into one of them (a popular person's point of view). Yuu and Masa seemed to like me for it. I guess real friends and family is sort of close to what it's all about.

Okay, that might've been pretty shallow of me.

But anyways, I decided to, out of pure gut or stupidity, stand up to Dean. This summer I've grown about three inches, so I might just be his height! Or not. He still had a full head on me.

"Hey, Dean!" I greeted one day in the hallway.

At the time, he was just standing there with a few of his cheerleader friends. I didn't really care what they were talking about, but it must be important, seeing as he looked pretty annoyed when he turned to face me. "What do you want?"

"I just wanted to tell you that Hitomi's officially my sister. How does that make you feel?"

He shrugged. "Okay, I guess. Why would I care?"

"Don't you remember? You used to pick on me for defending my one and only sister." I said this a little louder. It was just loud enough for some of the teachers to hear!

Here, teachers are really judgmental. If you slip up, they would hold it against you. "This action will make it harder for you to get into high school. And not going to high school will end up with you not getting into college." They would always say. "You're basically throwing your life away over a stupid, immature action such as this."

"Shut up!" Dean hissed.

"Why? Does me being related to – in your words – the weird girl bother you anymore?"

"Not in front of the teachers!"

"What are you talking about?" I asked. "Are you going to beat me up like you did last year for being related to – in your words again – the weird girl?"

"No, but I might beat you for annoying me!" He raised a fist.

"Mr. Fung?" One of the teachers called. She was obviously angry at him. "Do we need you back in the principal's office?" She grabbed his ear and dragged him away. "Such threats will make it harder for you to get into high school. And not going to high school will end up with you not getting into college…" She said as she left the scene with Dean in tow.

I love beating him with my mind! And apparently, so did the other kids, seeing as they cheered in the background with Hitomi giving me one big hug. "You're the best, Makoto!" She said.

"Thanks." I said. "I try."

And from then on, I wasn't afraid to tell the world.

I am Makoto Izumi-Tachikawa!

_Different POV! Different POV! Different POV!_

Well, here I am. For one year, I've had Makoto to call my brother. It has been such an adventure, but the best part is that it's not over! Ever since he's been defending me, I didn't feel too ashamed to be around people. I actually eat lunch at the cool table, I've joined the computer club at middle school, and I've met a few new friends. And I even had my eye on someone if you know what I mean!

His name is Connor. You know, T.K.'s son. He's so cute! And one day, he asked me to the middle school dance! Isn't that something! But there was a catch.

"I can't go to the dance with you." I said. "I'm not going without my brother."

"Okay." He said. "Bring him along! The more the merrier!"

"What about Motimon?"

"Oh, don't worry about me!" He said. "Go ahead and have fun with your friends!"

"You won't get lonely while we're gone?"

"No way! I still have Tanemon, my Digi-sister, remember?"

I giggled. "Right."

"Well then, it's a date!" Connor said. "I'll pick you up at seven." He smiled as he waved goodbye.

As soon as he was gone, I did my first school-girl squeal! He's taking me to the dance! Yes!

When I was going to tell Makoto, he came by with great news himself! "Hey, Hitomi, you won't believe what happened!" He cheered, holding my hands.

"What?"

"I asked Kim to the dance and she said yes!"

"Really? Connor asked me to the dance and _I_ said yes!" I told him. "But we have to go together."

"Of course we're going together! Why wouldn't we?"

I've never felt so pretty that day of the dance! In fact, I've never felt so pretty all year! And that was because of Makoto. Whenever people use to tease me, I would feel low and hideaway into the computer lab. But it's different now. With him around, people thought twice! Now people are actually talking to me! I have arrived into the popular crowd!

I am Hitomi Izumi-Tachikawa!

The End

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As you can see, this is the end. But I'm also taking requests on any other stories about the epilogue on season 2. So if you have any questions (Where did the mom go?; Where did the dad go?; What kind of person is this person's kid like?; Why did this DigiDestined get this job?; etc.) or you just want me to start a collection of one-shots based on this story, using its characters and all that, then leave a review. I'm doing all of this based on request from the readers. I will answer all epilogue questions with a story! Challenge me! But don't forget to leave a review to leave a request or comment about the story!


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